ChronoHeta
by I Am Sweden
Summary: When the newly developed Telepod malfunctions, Alfred must travel through time to save the princess, save the world, and hopefully defeat an evil overlord or two along the way. When the fate of millions rests on the shoulders of one boy, can time be changed, or will history be forced to repeat itself? CT-crossover, AU.
1. Chapter 1

**Summary- When the newly developed Telepod malfunctions, Alfred must travel through time to save the princess, save the world, and hopefully defeat an evil overlord or two along the way. When the fate of millions rests on the shoulders of one boy, can time be changed, or will history be forced to repeat itself? CT-crossover, AU.**

**I'VE FINALLY DONE IT. At long last, combining my two loves, Hetalia and Chrono Trigger, I give you all CHRONOHETA! For the record, this will be quite different from the game, if any have played it. Lovas does not exist, and there are a lot more twists. I didn't label this as a crossover because almost no one reads those. -.- Anyway, let's just pretend this is like Hetaoni, Hetaquest, and Romaheta, okay?**

**ChronoHeta**

**Chapter 1-**

"This is the last time I'm going to tell you, Alfred! Get out of bed or you'll miss the beginning of Michael's show!"

The nineteen-year-old stirred at his mother's mistake. His friend was _Matthew_, not Michael. Alfred didn't blame her, though. After all, they had only been friends since they were, like, _in diapers._ Letting out a massive yawn, he reached out for his glasses, so he could properly greet the angry light pouring in from his bedroom window. Alfred didn't have to check his clock to see that it was already noon. The noise from town was already at its midday clamor.

He slipped on his jacket and flashed himself a huge, pearly smile in the mirror hanging on the wall. After his late night adventures scouring town for his pet rabbit, who had a talent for running off, he had snuck back inside his house and fell asleep without changing out of his clothes. Since it didn't look too shabby, he went with it. Alfred only hoped his mother wouldn't guess he had run all the way to pier.

"Finally," Virginia Jones smiled when her son stumbled downstairs, nearly running into the wall. She ruffled his hair and handed him an apple and a wad of cash. "There's breakfast and allowance. I've already fed that rabbit of yours, so off you go!"

Before any of this could even register in his sleep-ridden mind, he found himself outside with the door slammed shut behind him. Alfred couldn't be sure, but he sometimes suspected his mother kicked him out on purpose. She was always going off about how he should move out, get a job, do something productive for the rest of society. Whatever. He was still a kid! And he did help out, too! Alfred was the hero of his town. Whenever one of Francis's inventions went haywire because he wouldn't let Matthew tweak it, Alfred was the first to come and help put the fire out.

Even more than that, he was the only one in town who would actually test Francis and Matthew's inventions. Funnily enough, he was also the only person who would try the food Arthur Kirkland, the traveling magician who came to the fair each year, made. It was weird, but everyone avoided the poor guy like the plague when he came to visit. Arthur wasn't too bad of a person. A bit annoying and a total fake, but Alfred enjoyed his company sometimes.

Arthur was the only person who bothered to listen to his stories. Ever since Alfred was a little kid, he had big dreams of making it into the sky one day. Not with one of Matthew's silly flying contraptions, of course. None of them could handle something bigger and heavier than a teddy bear. But the sky had always fascinated Alfred. Arthur told him stories of a place in the sky, floating above the clouds. He claimed magical people lived there and kept it floating.

Alfred knew he was crazy, but it was fun to think about such a place. Magic didn't exist, of course. He knew it was probably impossible to fly in the sky anyway.

The apple his mother had given him was eaten in record time, core thrown into the sea lapping beside him. Guardia was a small country with only three major cities worth mentioning. Truce, where Alfred was from, sat closest to the castle in the very north. Past Zenan Bridge sat Porre at the south end of the huge island. A little ways across the sea was another island, called Medina, inhabited by mystics. While Alfred didn't believe in something like magic, he was well aware monsters did exist, and lived a lifestyle almost similar to humans.

Which was _freaky_. Alfred had never seen one of these mystics, and didn't really want to see one either. Only one man bothered to live in Medina, a swordsmith named Antonio. Like Arthur, he only showed his face at the annual fair.

The fair had began four hundred years ago when Guardia won an epic war against some crazy mystics and their terrifying and strangely human leader, Magus. Alfred didn't particularly care for the details. History was nice and all, but the fair was a bit more important nowadays than a victory by a mysterious hero. This hero was a knight, legend said, that wielded a legendary sword and stormed Magus's Keep. Single-handedly, he defeated the Fiendlord and brought peace to Guardia!

But the fair was still cooler.

Kids ran screaming past him, chasing each other and trying to keep up with the costumed race runners. Colorful balloons were tied to every available surface, and smiles ran amuck on every face. Alfred beamed at the colorfully striped tents sat up around the town square. His friend Tony, son of the local merchant, was set up somewhere near the square. Other vendors from all over the country were set up, showing off fancy Porrean jewelry and awesome swords, courtesy of Antonio.

However, Alfred was running late. He skirted around everyone, rushing past Antonio and his random assistant. "Hey, 'Tonio!" Alfred hollered as he zoomed past.

"Hola, Alfred! Matthew was looking for you!"

"I know! See ya, 'Tonio!"

In the very center of the square sat Leene's Bell, crafted four hundred year's ago. It was erected before the very first fair came to be and had shone proudly every following year. There was a sappy legend about the bell, too. Alfred wryly grinned as it randomly rang- the sign that something special was about to begin. His mom liked to talk about it too. Several years ago, she ran into Alfred's father under the bell. Love at first sight, blah blah, happy ending! Well, until his father died at sea when he was seven, but Alfred didn't particularly like to think about that.

Alfred was still staring up at the bell when someone suddenly entered his path. Gracefully, he ran into the person, knocking them both to the ground. The stupid bell continued to ring. "Sorry!" Alfred burst, jumping up. "I'm sorry, dude, I didn't see you and… and…."

Maybe the bell wasn't so stupid after all.

A beautiful blonde girl sat up, glaring at him with magnificent navy eyes. She wore a maid's uniform with the Guardian shield emblem on the sleeve, which meant she was from the castle. From the _castle!_ This girl, who also had a cute navy bow in her hair, probably knew all kinds of knights. She might have even known the princess!

Princess Natalya was the most beautiful girl in all of Guardia- or so he had heard. Alfred actually hadn't seen her before. King Guardia never let her out of the castle. Before the queen died, all of the royal family had visited Truce. They used to show up at the last day of the fair, too, as part of the Moonlight Parade. But Queen Aliza's death changed everything, it seemed. The king became a recluse, pulling his daughter in obscurity. No one had seen her for fourteen years.

Alfred helped her to her feet, still agape. This girl was gorgeous. She dusted off her skirt and addressed Alfred for the first time. Alfred grinned. "Hi! I'm Alfred!"

She punched him. Alfred stumbled back, holding his nose. "Geez!" he burst, suddenly seeing three identical girls. Alfred blinked, and there was one again. "What the heck was that for?"

The girl snarled and grabbed the front of his shirt. "What did you do with my pendant?" she growled, yanking him forward.

"P-pendant?" he stuttered. "What are you-"

"You took it!" she accused, glare melding into something murderous.

Alfred went into action, snatching up her hands. The girl uttered a cry of surprise. As she struggled, Alfred looked over her shoulder for any pendant. At the base of the bell's arch, a tiny prismatic stone glimmered in the sun. "Hey, is it that thing?"

The girl whipped her head around. "Let go of me now!"

"So, that's it?" Alfred asked, releasing her wrists. The girl dropped down and gathered it up, a smile finally popping up on her face. Alfred curiously poked his head over her shoulder. "It's really pretty," he commented. "Is it a family heirloom or something?"

"Yes," she answered, clasping it back around her neck. "It is very important. Thank you for finding it. Goodbye."

Alfred blinked in shock as she just stood and started walking off, offering no more explanation. He didn't even know her name, and she had practically attacked him! "Hey! Wait a minute! I don't know your name!"

"Why would you need to know my name?"

He came to a stop. She had practically stuttered out the question. However, when the girl turned around, there was anything but fear on her cold face. She gave a quick curtsey. "Pardon my rudeness. I simply haven't the time to chat. If you must know, my name is… Bela. I believe you said you were Alfred? I'm glad to have made your acquaintance. Goodbye."

"Aw, Bela, you can't be in a hurry today! You're at the fair! What about having fun?"

Bela paused, eyes flickering to the two guards standing at watch at the north end of the square. Alfred followed her gaze and frowned. "If you don't want to be caught, you could've said so. I can show you how to go around all of them, if you want. Besides, they'll have to move eventually. My buddy's show is starting any minute now."

Before she could argue, Alfred grabbed her hand and took off. "I'll take you to everything fun! We'll start with Arthur's magic show!"

((((()))))

"Welcome one and all to Arthur Kirkland's tent of horrors! The spine tingling show is about to begin!"

The masked, cloaked figure drooped when Alfred walked inside. "Never mind. It's just you again."

Arthur Kirkland took off the mask, revealing his messy mop of hair and monstrously huge eyebrows. Bela's mouth dropped open. "Those can't be real," she murmured.

"They are," Alfred whispered. He put on a massive grin and addressed Arthur. "Howdy! I'm actually here to see your stupid show today!"

Arthur flared up. The shadows around the tent started to quiver. Bela apprehensively moved a little closer to Alfred, who was completely unfazed. In fact, it was almost as if he didn't see the moving shadows! "Stupid? _Stupid?_ I come all the way from Choras to put on this show! Do you know how long it takes to get here from Choras, which is well past _Medina_? Quite a while! And I always have to catch a ride with that annoying Antonio fellow who never stops talking about tomatoes!"

Alfred rolled his eyes. The shadows were practically dancing over the walls. However, as soon as Arthur sighed, they settled back into their normal places, only moving to the flickering torchlight. Bela flinched when Arthur bowed before her. Anxiety made her stomach do flips. However, Choras really was far away. Surely this man couldn't know who she was. If Alfred, who actually lived in Truce, didn't recognize her, Arthur couldn't possibly-

She froze as his smile crumbled. Bela's hand went to her side, where a kitchen knife was concealed under her skirts. If anyone dared try and turn her in to the guards, she would gut them and run. She couldn't stand one more day at that awful place! Arthur took her hands, awe written on his face. "You can't possibly be…." He quickly shook his head, taking a step back. "M-my apologies. You look like… someone I used to know very well. A little girl from my home. I once was her teacher many years ago."

"When you used to live in that floaty place?" Alfred joked. He lightly elbowed Bela. "Artie's full of stories about the place."

"Stories… yes. Just stories. Because anything else would impossible in this day and age," Arthur muttered, more to himself than to Bela and Alfred.

Bela slightly frowned, blurry memories popping into her head. When she was young, Bela used to dream of the sky. She would sit on the grass beside her mother and talk of the strange dreams she would have nearly every night- Bela was a little princess, always holding to the hand of her fictitious brother and following close behind her "big sister". Her father was the king, and many different people were on her father's court. Two young brothers with odd curls, a woman with the strength of ten men, a fearless and valiant warrior who Bela found to be incredibly annoying.

She snapped out of her reverie when Alfred shook her shoulder. "You're not looking too good," he observed. "We can come back later, after Mattie's show?"

"Y-yeah," she agreed, faintly nodding. "Pleasure to meet you, Arthur. I apologize for being unable to see your show."

Arthur waved after them, a thousand thoughts flying through his head at once. If that girl had that pendant….

Things in Truce weren't going to remain peaceful much longer.

((((()))))

"Hey, Antonio's still here! You gotta meet him. He lives in Medina."

Bela felt her shoulder pop out of socket when Alfred yanked her forward. When they came to a halt, Bela found herself before a beaming tanned man who reeked of tomato. A very bored young lady sat off to the shade, flipping through a book. "Matthew's not going to be happy you blew him off for a girl," Antonio began, smirking to Alfred.

However, Alfred wasn't a bit of attention to him. He was practically melting over the swords on display. Antonio grinned and picked up one with a crimson blade. "This is made from refined Denadorite. It used to be a pretty famous mineral four hundred years ago. I've heard from some of the mystics that one of Magus's generals wielded a sword made out of this stuff."

"Whoa," Alfred awed, reverently poking at it. "The one with the sword was… Slash, right?"

Antonio nodded, his smile getting even wider if possible. "Yeah! Magus had three generals: Slash, Flea, and Ozzie. Slash didn't have magic, so a lot of people suspect he was human too. Flea was a talented magician. Ozzie did a lot of plotting, so a bunch of mystics revere him almost as much as Magus."

"But the awesome hero defeated all of them," Alfred said, gesturing widely. "With his legendary sword, he kicked their butts and saved the day."

Bela couldn't help but sigh. Everyone knew this story! Why was Antonio so enthusiastic about it? Bela, and everyone else in Guardia, had learned the legend in kindergarten. She personally thought the legend was overrated. The hero probably didn't even exist- he was likely made up to add some flair to a war that no one cares about.

"One of these days when I'm a rich and famous hero," Alfred started, "I'm going to buy one of your swords."

Antonio nodded. "Then I'll have to make a special one for you. By the way, Miss Alfred's Friend, could you tell me what stone your necklace is made out of?"

Bela flinched yet again, hand flying up to grab the stone. "That's none of your business," she hissed. Bela grabbed Alfred's wrist and pulled him away. This one, at least, hadn't almost recognized her. But to inquire about her necklace? Bela had to constrain herself from decapitating him. _No one _messed with her pendant.

"Adios, Princesa!" Antonio shouted after them. "Keep an eye on her, Alfred! She's important!"

Bela's heart stopped. Alfred waved back and took charge yet again, completely oblivious to Bela's hyperventilating. Instead, he took off his coat and dropped it over her shoulders. When she looked up at him, she found that concerned look back on his face. "I don't know if you're getting sick or what," Alfred said, pulling his jacket tighter around her, "but I can't have you feeling down today. Besides, you haven't even seen the best part of the fair yet! Matthew and his dad think they've built a thing that can teleport people. I'm supposed to test it out!"

She hesitated for a moment, reaching out to clench the sides of the jacket. It was nice and warm. "Um, Alfred… I think you should know that my name isn't Bela, but-"

"CANDY!"

Bela stood, mouth open, staring as Alfred ran over to a costumed man pushing a cart of lollipops around. His booming voice requested a strawberry flavored one. Bela groaned, shutting her mouth. Maybe she shouldn't tell him who she was. Alfred was stupider than that Antonio person, so enthralled about myths.

Alfred popped up at her side once more, licking a lollipop the size of his face. "Sorry, what were you going to say, Bela?"

She shook her head, handing the coat back to him. "I'm not cold."

((((()))))

"Step right up, you marvelously beautiful crowd, and test the first teleportation device ever created! A true beauty (like you, in the back), crafted by yours truly and my wonderful (and single!) son, Matthew!"

Francis Bonnefoy withdrew a rose from his pale blue suit jacket and humbly bowed to one of the ladies in the front row. Matthew Williams, Francis's adopted son, grabbed the back of his jacket and pulled him back to the invention. A bashful grin on his face, Matthew waved to the crowd. "Actually, since you all paid to see the show and not be in it, we won't require you to step up. My assistant is unfortunately running a little late today."

"In the meantime," Francis started again, flipping his carefully styled hair over his shoulder, "you may marvel at me. I mean the invention."

"Papa!" Matthew furiously whispered, yanking Francis's chin to him. The younger blonde led him over to the controls, smacking his hand when Francis waved to one of the girls. "I need you to find Alfred for me. If we don't give them a show soon, they're going to demand a refund. With all the money we put into this thing, we can't afford that!"

Francis sighed. "Virginia promised to have him up and off to the fair by twelve. We have no idea where he could be! Alfred could be all the way in Porre by now!"

A laugh cut through Matthew's sentence. Both whipped around to see Alfred Jones proudly beaming at the entrance of the clearing, a beautiful girl at his side. "I'd be late too if I picked up a lovely thing like her," Francis snickered, prancing out to announce their assistant had finally arrived.

Matthew swallowed the urge to tackle and strangle Alfred as he approached. Instead, he rubbed his temples and led him over to the first part of the Telepod. The Telepod, whose name Matthew found to be incredibly corny, was a machine separated into two separate round platforms. On the first, a person would step up and wait to be scattered into particles and sent to the second platform. Matthew had tested the machine countless times at home, sending his prized teddy bear across the living room (which was better known as The Area Francis And Matthew Often Caught On Fire). He had secretly borrowed Alfred's rabbit to teleport. Since it was fine, Matthew declared it a success, and announced they were bringing it to the fair.

Alfred waved at Bela as Matthew droned on and on about how he was to remain absolutely still, unless he wanted to reappear without an arm or something. Fully aware he wasn't paying attention, Matthew added, "Francis made out with your mother yesterday, and I ate your rabbit for breakfast this morning."

"My mother hates Francis and I saw Bunny before I left!" Alfred snapped, turning his goo-goo eyed stare at Bela into a scowl at Matthew.

Matthew smiled and patted his head. "Now that I've got little Alfred's attention, I'll start up the machine. Try not to move?"

Alfred nodded. Francis flamboyantly gestured back to the machine. "Watch as this stunning young man transcends all we've ever known about science! Watch as he is teleported across the courtyard!"

At Alfred's only slightly shaky nod, Matthew pulled the lever. The Telepod buzzed to life, lighting up the blue platforms. Alfred sent a pleading look to Matthew, but his friend merely shrugged. No backing out now.

Bela, along with everyone else in the harassed crowd, gasped as Alfred blinked off of the first platform. A few heartbeats later, he reappeared on the second. Matthew excitedly turned the machine off and ran over to meet him. Alfred ignored the offered hand to help him off the platform in favor of puking behind the machine. The crowd let a chorus of "Eww!"

"But it did work!" Francis burst. "Something of ours _finally _worked! Who will be next to try the amazing Telepod?"

Many hands excitedly popped up, but Francis's eyes went straight to Bela. Her heart sank as Francis pointed to her. "How about the vision of enchantment in the navy dress? Now, don't be shy, my dear, step right up!" Much like with Alfred, Francis grabbed her hand and led her to the machine. Bela cast a look to Alfred, but he was still preoccupied with being sick. Matthew patted his back and rushed back to the controls.

Francis gave her a quick peck on the cheek and took her hands. "Now, Natalya, you don't remember me, I'm sure. However, after this, you'll likely want to kill me. Know that I'm doing this for your benefit, since I am one of your loyal subjects."

The machine whirred to life and Francis ducked away and out of her reach. "Stop this thing!" Bela screeched. However, even as Matthew pushed the lever up, the machine kept going. Bela's pendant flashed, momentarily blinding them all.

Alfred jumped up. "Bela!"

Between the two platforms erupted a swirling dark mass. The crowd let out a simultaneous scream, fighting and clawing to get out of the area. Alfred ran to the platform, reaching out his hand, but with a scream of her own, Bela was dragged into the portal. Francis threw his arms around him, holding him back. "She's gone! You can't do anything!"

Matthew withdrew his homemade gun from his pocket (he was a very paranoid and cautious young man) and fired a few shots into the machine. Finally, the lights flickered out and the whirring died down until all was silent. The portal fizzled and disappeared.

Francis let go of Alfred, worriedly biting his lip. He knelt down and picked up the pendant, a tiny crack in the surface. "Darn it," the man breathed. "It was too strong after all."

"What are you talking about?" Alfred demanded, grabbing the pendant from him. "What the heck just happened here?"

"I think it's quite obvious your friend disappeared," Francis said. He nodded to the pendant and explained, "It looked like the Telepod's energy reacted with the pendant, summoning that rift."

Matthew burst between the two before Alfred's anger got the best of him. "Papa," he quietly started, "how about you make sure the square isn't in chaos right now? I'll take care of this."

Francis nodded and spun away.

"No offense, Mattie, but your dad's a weirdo."

"I get that a lot."

((((()))))

"YOU IDIOT! WHAT WERE YOU THINKING, SENDING HER OFF THROUGH TIME AND SPACE? WHAT IF WE HAD THE WRONG GIRL? SHE DIDN'T EVEN RECOGNIZE ME!"

Francis waved off Arthur's shout. Magicians were always so stuffy and full of it. Thinking the girl wasn't Natalya because she didn't recognize him? Psh, _Arthur _was the idiot. Francis, at least, had the dignity to get things rolling.

Antonio whistled as his friends bickered back and forth to each other. He leaned against the fake brick wall at the back of Arthur's tent, where they had all agreed to meet. Since no one but Alfred bothered to visit Arthur's attraction, they decided it was a safe place to discuss the latest turn of events. A very important thought suddenly occurred to Antonio. "Amigos, since the pendant didn't go with Natalya, what if she didn't go to the right time?"

Arthur and Francis paused mid-yell. They shared a terrified look.

"I'll have to go after her," Arthur said immediately. He picked up his cloak and wrapped it around him. Francis and Antonio pulled him back.

"There's no need for that," Antonio told him. "I talked a lot about the Fiend War, so she'll probably go there! Since she looks just like the Guardian Princess, they'll probably think she's their princess or something and keep her safe!"

Francis smacked the back of his head. Antonio winced. "She looks like the Guardian Princess because she _is _the Guardian Princess! If she doesn't make it to the right time, she won't change things, and we'll get arrested for being terrorists!"

"But we're not terrorists!" Antonio panicked. "I can't be arrested here! Who else will water my tomatoes at home?"

"And who else will keep the Choras Ghost inside his mansion and away from the townspeople?" Arthur added.

Francis nodded. "Exactly! I can't let Matthew be dragged into this mess either. He's too soft to go through this. Arthur, if she does end up in the Middle Ages, you can't go around using magic. They are in the middle of a war _against _magic users. I don't think she would cooperate with you anyway."

No, Francis figured as he leaned on the wall next to Antonio, they needed someone heroic enough to delve into the unknown and do anything to save her. They needed someone with meager skill who had no magical abilities whatsoever. They needed….

((((()))))

Francis ran back to the courtyard where Matthew paced, biting his lip the same way his father did when nervous. Arthur and Antonio ran up to the Telepod, looking for the pendant.

"Uh, Matthew," Francis shakily began, seeing they couldn't find it, "what happened to Alfred and that pendant?"

He forced himself to look away from the panicky two. Matthew sighed. "He said he wanted to go after her, so… I… kinda started it up and sent him off. But I have a theory!" he quickly said, seeing Francis's face crumple. "See, I figured that something of such little force, even using the stone as a reactor, couldn't form a black hole. That eliminates the possibility of them floating off in space somewhere. Before I let him go, I told him that the only likely possibility was that the portal was a 'gate' which would send him to another time. I did a quick check on the pendant, and I learned its frequency was a lot higher than Denadorite, the strongest reactant we have. However, if I find a piece of refined Denadorite and put it on something, you can crank up the power of the Telepod by at least seventy percent, and I'll go through time with them!"

Francis smushed the boy to his chest before he could further ramble. "God bless you, boy," he muttered. "Your strange little brain just helped us more than you can imagine."

"Mmmm mm mmm mmmm?" he gagged. Francis released him. Matthew gasped in a breath and repeated, "What do you mean?"

"Antonio has some Denadorite you can borrow," Francis said instead, waving his… acquaintances over. "You'll have to create something that will bring you back through time."

Arthur held out a wand. Matthew blinked at the thing. Magic was highly irrational and wouldn't get them through time. However, the wand was thick enough to be hollowed out and pumped full of gears that would spin and create just enough electrical force to make the gate appear again! Matthew only hesitantly took it, slightly frowning at how Arthur would not get it back in one piece.

Oh well. His loss.

"I'll have it finished within the hour. Surely Alfred can't screw things up too bad without me, right?"

Francis moaned into his hands.


	2. Chapter 2

**In case anyone was wondering, I did indeed completely ignore my homework to get this finished and posted, because I'm really excited for this fic. XD Yes, I've butchered this a lot from the original storyline. Marle (Bela) was supposed literally fade out of existance because the queen was kidnapped, and you learn basically nothing about Frog (Gilbert) until much later.**

**But whatever. It's called fanfiction for a reason. :D**

**Chapter 2-**

"_On this day, in the 593rd year of Our Lord, I hereby name thee Protector of the Faith and Defender of Our Guardia. From this day forth, thou art a knight of the kingdom."_

_The young man couldn't keep the grin off his face as the king tapped either shoulder with his blade, giving him more than he had ever gotten from anyone else. Since meeting Fritz, this had been his one and only dream- to become a knight, so he could fight evil and lay waste to the pesky mystics. Not even Magus himself could stop him now! Excitement ran through his veins, lighting up his bright blue eyes, as blue as the sky itself. His blonde hair, which for once was combed down, was highlighted with flickering chandelier light._

_Countless townspeople, other knights, and prestigious noblemen stood around the altar, watching the ceremony. Manolia Cathedral was filled to the brim with fellow Guardians- but he could care less about them._

_As he stood, his eyes met the smiling knight in the front row, clapping along with everyone else. A gilded sword sat at his armored side- not the fabled Masamune of legend, but merely a substitute until the blade was his. Sir Frederick, in all his old age and wisdom, drew his sword in salute as he turned to march down the aisle and into a world where he was a knight. His fellow brothers-in-arms followed suit. At the end of the line of knights stood a young man, blonde hair and blue eyes like him, with a stony expression. Gilbert blinked at his unusual- almost unearthly- clothes, and he was gone. With a small shrug, he carried on._

_The heavy, dark double doors at the entrance opened wide to greet him-_

_-and everything was in chaos. He could only stare at the polite, almost bashfully childlike smile on the man's face. Over top of his dark armor, around his neck, was wrapped a ragged and pale scarf. "Congratulations," the man sweetly said. "I've come to give you a gift to celebrate this accomplishment."_

_Behind him, Fritz let out an agonized scream. He whirled around, eyes wide and fearful, to see him clutching at his bloody chest. A trickle of blood dripped from his lip as Fritz crashed to his knees. A sword that previously hadn't been in his possession fell from his hands, clattering in the hushed silence. A scream escaped his mouth as well, voicing the excruciating rip that pulled his heart in two._

_Magus, with his sickly sweet smile, put a hand on his shaking shoulder. "Let's show the world the monster you really are, shall we?"_

_A new, fire-hot pain speared his eyes, ravaged his skin. He felt something pulling at his hair, ripping at every part of him. He fell to the ground, yelling out, begging for it to stop, to end-_

Gilbert's eyes flew open.

A dark stone ceiling cast frightening shadows over him, but Gilbert merely shrugged them off and sat up, facing the heavy iron bars of his prison cell. His dreams kept getting crazier as the years progressed. Each one held the same story, mixed in with a past memory. The day he was dubbed a knight, turning into the day Fritz died? Gilbert suspected it was another part of his horrid curse- he would see a million and one ways to watch his friend die.

A couple of measly soldiers sat at a crude wooden table, gossiping in hushed tones. "What a bunch of girls," Gilbert sneered, getting their attention. "Sitting around talking about the best dresses, the prettiest horses…. The least you could do is give me some _manly _guards."

One jumped up to his feet, face red. Before any profanity could be exchanged between them, a new figure came into the office. Though technically no longer one of his subjects, Gilbert instinctively bowed lowly. "This is the prisoner?"

With another low bow, the soldiers answered, "_It _is a mystic, Your Majesty! He hides behind a cloak to avoid detection, but we apprehended him-"

King Guardia grabbed the keys from him, face one of fury. "This man is an esteemed knight on my court! He is Captain Gilbert Beilschmit!"

If he wasn't in the presence of His Majesty, Gilbert would have collapsed to the floor in laughter. The looks on their faces, hearing they had just taken their childhood hero into bondage! Even more, that their childhood hero was actually _alive._ Without waiting for the soldiers' pathetic apologies, King Guardia unlocked the cell door, finally allowing Gilbert a breath of free air. Gilbert gave another bow, the King impatiently rolled his eyes.

That was not normal- King Guardia held his honor utmost, never failing to keep up appearances. "Sire," Gilbert began, "what's wrong?"

"It's Leene," he said, voice dropping. "The queen… has disappeared."

An icy smile tugged at his pale lips. For seven years, Gilbert had been the color of snow with eyes the color of fresh blood- the price he had to pay for not saving Fritz. For seven years… every second was used to plan for the day when he would meet Magus again, to repay _him _with a gift. Gilbert figured getting a sword through his gut would be a nice way to recompense him. However, he couldn't just leave it at that. Magus hadn't just killed his friend, hero, and family, he also turned Gilbert into a freak show; he was made a monster, to be confused with _mystics._

Gilbert was going to go all out on this one. He was going to be _awesome._

"I see," Gilbert said after a moment. He flickered his eyes over to the soldiers, dumbfounded and suitably cowed. When he turned back to the King, any trace of smugness was gone from his face. His kingdom may have turned their backs on him, but Gilbert would not turn his back on them. Even if he was a monster, just as Magus had said, Gilbert was still a knight with a duty to protect his king and queen. "I'll leave right away, Sire. I swear I will have Leene back by your side before the day is blackened."

King Guardia's lips twitched, but his regal act was at work once more. Gilbert knew he was freaking out with worry on the inside, ready to fall apart at the seams as soon as the eyes of his subjects weren't on him, watching his every move.

Gilbert had never wanted to be a king. That kind of responsibility- who would want that? But Gilbert respected his king, and loved his queen. He may have turned into a rogue after Magus tore his honor to shreds that horrible day seven years ago, but Gilbert was nothing short of loyal.

With a nod of his head, Gilbert grabbed the nearest soldier's sword and placed it in the empty sheathe at his side. The stupid young men had taken it from him when they dragged him out of his home, ranting and raving about how he was a mystic.

He mentally told himself to remember to steal Magus's weapon to recompense for his own.

Through the candle-lit castle corridors he jogged, face, hair and skin covered by a cloak, mind recalling each twist and turn to get him upstairs at out of castle. He had to save Leene and get back to tracking down Magus. This time, he would avenge Fritz!

Before Gilbert could yank open the door, the doors opened to him, smacking him in the face. A young man wearing the oddest clothes- though not the same as the blonde boy in his dream- shoved past him, hollering out for "Bela".

Kids these days. Holding his nose and barely restraining himself from tackling the kid and throwing him back outside, Gilbert instead kindly grabbed his shoulder, effectively yanking him back. "Uh, who are you?" Gilbert kindly asked. Upon seeing the boy, wearing two thin pieces of glass in a wire that covered his eyes, Gilbert paused. The boy stared back at him a moment, and Gilbert ducked his head away. "I said," he repeated, "who are you? You aren't one of Magus's agents, are you?"

"Magus?" the boy burst in surprise. His eyes went wide. "Crap! We're that far back in the past?"

The past? This kid had to have stolen some of his father's ale. But his breath didn't smell of drink, nor were his eyes bloodshot. If he wasn't drunk…. "You're mad," Gilbert decided with a sigh. As a knight (or, technically, an ex-knight), Gilbert supposed it was his responsibility to take him back home. If he knew the forest outside the castle well enough to navigate it, he had to be from Truce. However, the queen most definitely was not in town- it had been searched through and through by the King's best knights (besides him). Gilbert couldn't afford the time to take him back to his mother. What if something happened to Leene in that time?

The boy easily wriggled his way out of Gilbert's grasp. He gave a beaming smile and stuck out his hand. "I'm Alfred F. Jones. You're some kind of knight, right? Think you could help me?"

"Uh…," Gilbert started. "I'm… I'm…-" He couldn't very well give his name away. Gilbert was supposedly dead, killed on Denadorino with Fritz. This kid was the right age to know of Fritz's legacy, so surely he had also heard of the dashing knight that had accompanied Fritz on his journey to vanquish Magus. "I AM AWESOME."

Alfred stared. Then, he blinked, and stared a little longer. He slowly took a step back. "Right. Well, um, I'll just find another knight to help me find-"

"Wait a minute, 'find'? Who is your friend?"

Gilbert's mouth dropped open as he described a girl with long pale hair, navy eyes, wearing a dress that bore the Guardian crest. Aside from her age, this "Bela" sounded like she could pass for the Queen Leene's twin. Or, more unnervingly, the queen herself. Gilbert gave the empty corridor a good look before giving Alfred a frown. "Listen, kid. You don't sound like you're from around here, so you probably haven't heard the queen's gone missing."

Alfred's eyebrows furrowed. "…Went missing? The queen never went missing. That wasn't in my history book!"

"Book? A peasant like you can read?" This kid was stark-raving mad. History books? Only nobility had access to those, and Alfred certainly was not of noble blood. Although he did have the king's nose, and his hair was just a few shades darker than the queen's…. Something about Alfred was not right.

"I'm not a peasant, and of course I can read! In future, everyone has to go to school. Everyone's educated," Alfred explained. He snapped his fingers. "Here's proof! Uh, the Fiend War is going on right now, right? Magus is wreaking havoc and all that stuff? Well, according to our history, a hero will come out of nowhere with a legendary sword. He'll use the magic sword to open a hidden entryway on a mountain above Porre, and he'll storm Magus's castle. Magus dies, the mystics run off, and Guardia wins! I was at the fair celebrating that when my friend got sucked through time-"

Mountain above Porre… that hunk of rock along the coast, randomly jutting into the sea? There was no way that could be…. But Magus's armies had appeared out of seemingly nowhere, subjugating Porre first, then moving their way up. The war was finally at Zenan bridge, the only thing separating the devil himself from the rest of Guardia.

Alfred hopefully grinned. "You know what I'm talking about, so you believe me, right?"

Gilbert shook his head. "Nope. You're totally bonkers. But even so, I can't help but kinda like you, kid. You've looked through Truce for Bela, right?"

"I've looked everywhere but here in the castle and that cathedral to the west."

The cathedral to the west was Manolia Cathedral, the very same cathedral in which he was dubbed a knight. Before Magus turned him into a monster, Gilbert had spent most of his time there, helping out the awesome nuns who graciously let him live there until Fritz found him a place. All of a sudden, there was a cold, heavy feeling weighing down on his chest. What if something had happened to them while he was away?

"We're going to that cathedral, kid."

"You never told me your name!"

Gilbert grinned as he pushed the double doors open wide, welcoming the harsh sunlight outside. "I told you, kid. Call me Awesome."

((((()))))

"Again, we're so sorry, child, that we haven't seen either of your friends."

Matthew gratefully nodded his head once more and thanked the few nuns that had shown up to greet him into the cathedral. The four of them, upon hearing Matthew was meandering through Truce in search of his friends, had practically dragged him inside, offering him a place to rest for a moment.

"I guess I should go," Matthew started with a small, shy smile. "Thank you all very mu-"

"You mustn't!" one cried, a thin young woman with piercing green eyes. Her hair was an almost pinkish cherry blonde. Actually, once Matthew gave them all a good look, they all had green eyes and cherry blonde hair. Perhaps they were literally sisters? Matthew inwardly sighed in relief. If Alfred had been around to hear that, the joking would have never ended. The nun offered a nervous smile of her own, gesturing to the pew. "Wouldn't you much rather remain here?"

Although the offer was tempting- one nun had just come in with delicious-looking maple candies- Matthew knew Alfred and Bela were top priority. "I really need to find my friends," he regrettably told them, face falling along with theirs.

The nuns met each others' eyes. As if coming to a decision, they turned back to Matthew. Mouth in a hard frown, one snarled, "We really can't allow that."

The pupils of her eyes turned almost cat-like as her hair turned into a dimmed magenta color and skin considerably paled. Matthew backed up until his legs hit the pew, watching in horror as they others transformed along with her. Their legs grew together and turned into a scaly snake's tail. He let out a scream and pulled out his gun. He mentally counted how many bullets he had left (seventeen) and how many mystics there were (four). He hoped they wouldn't take more than four bullets each to die. However, he really couldn't afford to waste them if there were going to be more mystics to bar his path.

What was he saying? Matthew was going to _die_.

He fired at the first one, pushing the closest mystic away far enough for him to take off running towards the exit. Matthew saw the gilded doorknob turn. "DON'T COME IN!" he hollered as loudly as he could.

Matthew really shouldn't have been surprised to see Alfred kick open the door, completely disregarding the sacredness of the building. "Mattie!" Alfred grinned. Matthew grabbed his wrist and pulled him back out the door, calling for his new weird friend to come too. If Alfred was screwing up history by telling this cloaked man all about the future, Matthew was going to kill him. He would really like to keep things the way they were.

The man in the cloak, however, stood fast in the doorway. His figure rigid and absolutely _steamed_, he drew his sword. Even Matthew had to pause, in awe of the way he easily chopped through the mystics, as if it were a pastime of his. When he kicked at one, his hood flew off, revealing snow white hair. He didn't seem to notice, mouth still plastered into a snarl. He grabbed the last one's neck. "What did you do to them?" he shouted, knuckles white around the hilt of his sword. "Did you kill them? Those ladies were my friends!"

The mystic let out a raspy laugh. The man tightened his grip until it choked. "T-tasty," it forced out.

"Stop it!" Alfred yelled as he raised his sword. Matthew shut his eyes as he brought it down. He peeked an eye open. Gilbert slowly put the sword back its sheathe. He looked over his shoulder, giving Matthew a good look-over. Alfred released a tight sigh and nodded. "That's Mattie, one of my friends. I didn't know he'd be coming too."

Matthew cocked an eyebrow at his tone. Didn't think he'd come? Of course he would come! Who else was supposed to keep him out of trouble? Instead of entering lecture mode like he should have, Matthew simply bit his lip and stuck out his hand. "Um, yeah. Nice to meet you…?"

"Gilbert," he said distractedly, ignoring his hand.

Alfred's face lit up. "Finally! I knew your name wasn't Awesome!"

Gilbert ignored him too, poking his head into the cathedral. Alfred followed him unquestioningly. Matthew had a feeling he was about to get a massive migraine, but went back inside anyway, sure to keep his gun out and eyes peeled.

"So, you're friends with this Bela chick too, Matthew?" Gilbert finally said, poking at the wall. He took out his sword again and starting tapping it against the wall, as if looking for a hidden door or something. "By the way, unlike your friend over there, I'm not insane."

So Alfred had blabbed. Just great. Matthew gave an embarrassed nod. "I'm sorry for any crazy things he told you. Alfred has a really big imagination."

Gilbert paused, turning to blink. "What'd you say?"

"Um… he has a really big imagination?"

"Speak up, kiddo. I can't read 'whisper'."

Matthew shook his head. "Never mind," he quietly groaned.

Gilbert shrugged and went back to his searching. "Anyway, I'm on a mission to find someone close to me too, so I joined your buddy there. You know he's insane, right?"

"Not insane," Alfred sang across the room. He too had begun to knock on the walls. "Gilbo said the cathedral has a bunch of secret rooms they might be hiding the queen and/or Bela in. Problem is, they've apparently switched things up a little since the war started."

"It's still there," Gilbert stubbornly said.

Matthew's migraine had taken effect. Rubbing his temples exasperatedly, he gave the spacious room a good once-over. The architecture was exquisite, but also simply designed, further proving they were back in the past. If Matthew had to guess, he'd say they were in the middle of the middle ages (he again was glad Alfred didn't hear that). He had heard from some of the locals that they were in the middle of the Fiend War, meaning a psychopathic human who, for reasons unknown, was currently in the middle of leading droves of mystics into battle to hopefully eradicate all of the other humans.

However, he couldn't waste any time thinking about an evil overlord if the queen was missing. Matthew allowed himself to fall into "brainy mode", as Alfred liked to call it.

The first thing that caught his eye were the brass pipes of the grand organ in the corner of the sanctuary. The pipes rose into the ceiling. Across the room, where Gilbert was scowling at a particular patch of brick as if it reminded him of something, the pipes came out of the ceiling, facing the brick. The mortar around this area was made of a different mixture than that of the other everywhere else in the room.

Matthew's legs led him over to the organ. The keys were yellowed with age- save four, on the left end of the keys. Matthew put his fingers on them, again tracing the pipes. Only four opened back up. Perhaps these?

A horribly off-key note sang through the air. It was quickly cut off by a tremor that caused Gilbert to jump away from the wall. Matthew's face lit up as the bricks fell away to reveal the hidden door.

The proud blonde allowed Gilbert and Alfred only a moment to gawk at him. Alfred recovered first, well used to Matthew's brilliance. He tugged Gilbert back to the task on hand, and swung open the door.

((((()))))

"_Isn't it wrong to let a kid- especially a boy- stay in the cathedral with the nuns?" a knight worriedly twittered. Gilbert slightly stirred at the voice over top of him. When he blinked his eyes open, he was met with an unfamiliar room, filled with unfamiliar faces speaking an unfamiliar dialect of a language he thankfully knew, dressed in unfamiliar clothes. One face entered his line of vision, forcing him to focus his rambunctious mind on him._

_This face seemed different from the others. The old man was more than a little wrinkled, his hair wispy and gray like ash, tied into a loose ponytail. His smile, Gilbert supposed, was what truly calmed him down. The man presented a cup to him, filled with some red liquid he didn't know. But, upon realizing just how dry his mouth was, he eagerly drank it._

"_We found you out in the woods injured," the old man said, sure to speak each word clearly and slowly, as if knowing Gilbert was completely confused. It was probably his expression- it _felt _confused. "You muttered something about a palace, so we thought you might be a messenger for His Majesty."_

_Palace? That certainly didn't seem right. Though… it did stir something in him. Gilbert couldn't pinpoint a place or a clear image, but he was sure he had been somewhere like a palace. There were many people there, all gathered in the same area. Gilbert… knew them. At least, he had a feeling he knew them._

"_You've been through a lot," the old man softly continued. "Just take things one step at a time."_

"_Who are you?" he asked, positive he had seen this man somewhere before._

"_I'm a friend," he smiled. "You can call me Fritz."_

_Fritz told him he was in the backrooms of the local cathedral. They had carried him here, where the nuns had nursed him back to health. In the event that Gilbert had been a refugee because of the war or if he had lost his memory (which he supposed he had), the nuns had agreed to let him remain there._

_The second knight that had accompanied Fritz wasn't a weak little shrimp as his earlier worries had made him out to be. Cyrus, as he was soon introduced, was an apprentice knight under Fritz._

_Gilbert didn't know why, but he instantly admired the two. Before he even fully knew what he even looked like or if he was able to get out of bed, Gilbert blurted out, "I want to be a knight, like you guys."_

_Fritz merely grinned._

((((()))))

To see the place where he was "raised" in such a state almost sent Gilbert into a catatonic state. The tapestries intricately woven with icons of the saints were ripped to shreds, fallen in puddles of string. Claws marks covered the stone walls. He really didn't want to think of what had caused the darkened, crusty spots littered about on the floor. The furniture was either just as broken as him or shoved uncaringly against the walls to make way for the one thing not sullied: a large, unfinished statue.

Luckily, Alfred successfully held him back before Gilbert could run his sword into the smirking rock. Matthew took a step forward in awe of the figure, depicted in armor and carrying a scythe whose blade looked longer than the man's torso. "It's Magus?" he murmured.

"Don't say that name," Gilbert snapped, turning his murderous glare on him. Alfred again quickly intervened, putting himself between the two. Gilbert looked ready to strangle him, but, as if remembering this was still a cathedral, no matter how violated it now was, he resisted the urge. "Please don't mention him again," he at last conceded in place of an apology.

Without a spoken word, they walked past the mollifying scene to the next door. It wasn't very long that they heard the first scream.

"QUEEN LEENE!"

"BELA!"

Alfred burst through the door, welcoming a horrific sight of Bela, in a ripped navy dress, wielding an even more terrifying kitchen knife. Behind her, screaming on the floor, hands on her ears, sat the queen. Matthew, of course, was the only one to notice the ugly mystic Bela was currently in the middle of fighting. This time, he didn't take the brief moment to assess the situation. Queen Leene's screaming had sent his adrenaline into action. Matthew fired three bullets into the mystic before he could even tell he had reached for his gun.

Bela whirled around in complete and utter shock, hair floating wildly around her angular face. "Alfred?" she burst in surprise. Gilbert kindly tackled her out of the way of the charging yellow mystic while Alfred grabbed the queen.

Matthew fired again, this time making the mystic take notice. Matthew also took notice of _it._ The monster was a massive, sickly yellow and scarred bug-like thing. He tried not to focus on the mystic's fangs, horns, or the six legs that looked just as lethal as Gilbert's sword.

Having almost instantly shoved Gilbert off of her, Bela launched herself at the monster, stabbing into it with her knife. The queen screamed again, but Alfred thankfully quieted her and decided to make himself a distraction.

Of all the days to leave the gun Matthew had made him at home.

"Ugly!" Alfred taunted, waving his arms widely. "I see they haven't invented the 'bath' yet!"

"Shut up, Al!" Matthew shouted. "You'll rip the space-time continuum!"

"And saying your fancy scientific words won't?" he countered. While he bickered back and forth with Matthew, the mystic charged, flinging Bela off his back. Before it impaled Alfred to the wall, Gilbert decided to run right at it, arm and sword extended. Sword and mystic met, and everything was suddenly painted a delightful maroon color. Even Bela shrieked at that, ducking her head away from the sight.

Gilbert ran straight to the queen and helped her up to her feet. Leene smushed him in a hug, completely forgoing her honor and duty as queen. "Gilbert," she cried. "I thought you were _dead._ Where have you been the past seven years? We- _I _needed you!"

"Y-Your Highness, please," Gilbert muttered embarrassedly. "H-how about we save all of this for when we get back to the castle?"

Leene sappily nodded. When she raised her head to finally get a good look at him, her face melded into one of unbridled fear. Leene let out another shriek, shoving Gilbert away from her. Startled, he fell back. Then, reached up and patted his head. He quietly cursed when he discovered his hood hadn't been on for the past while. "Your Highness, please, I can explain-"

"What have you done?" she screeched. "What have you _done?_"

Gilbert visibly flinched as if each word was a stab to the chest.

"He saved your life, Your Highness," Alfred spoke up. Leene and Gilbert both turned to him, suitably cowed. It was as if they had completely forgotten they weren't alone. After Matthew elbowed him in the ribs, he finally joined Matthew in a bow. He quickly straightened, frown etched into his face. "Obviously you guys in the past are freaked out by stuff like albinism, but it's not the work of the devil or something, I promise."

"It is," Gilbert miserably said. "It's a _curse, _you idiot."

Leene snapped her head back to him. "A curse? But, how…." Her expression turned from terrified into shock. "Magus did this to you?" she breathed.

Gilbert bowed his head in shame. "I'm the reason Fritz didn't come back," he spat out. "I failed him, and you, and His Majesty. I'm… I'm not awesome. I can't believe I'm even showing my face to you! You trusted us to come back, but-"

"Stop it!"

All eyes were turned on Bela, slightly swaying on her feet. Alfred steadied her, and, for once, she didn't try to push him away. "In case you have forgotten, we're standing in the middle of a giant puddle of rancid blood. I'd like to leave the room before I pass out." However, she didn't last but a moment longer, body going limp in Alfred's arms. He easily picked her up.

"To the castle?" Matthew proposed.

((((()))))

Gilbert traveled the entire way in shamed silence, hood drawn over his head, and cloak pulled close around him. Despite their best efforts, no one could convince him to open up.

Bela had started to wake right at the beginning of the forest to the castle- for which Alfred was extremely thankful, since his arms were seriously starting to ache. Thus did their ragged, exhausted group arrive at the castle, quite possibly the most filthy persons to ever set foot into the castle. The people were in a frenzy at once, whisking Queen Leene away to the infirmary, and pushing Alfred, Gilbert, Matthew, and Bela to the throne room.

King Guardia sat up straighter in his throne, although he had already been sitting with the rim-rod straight poise of a king. "Gilbert!" he grinned in delight. "I've heard you found Leene?"

He managed a smile, quickly falling on one knee. "It was all I could do to serve you, my Lord."

"Rise, Captain!" he ordered, aghast that his wife's hero would have the gall to bow before a man indebted to him. Surprised, Gilbert obeyed. King Guardia turned to his companions. "They aided you, I am to believe? Chancellor! Bring me my sword!"

"Right away, Sire."

The king rose from his throne and approached Alfred, for Matthew was half hidden in embarrassment and shock behind Bela. "My good sir, pray tell me your name."

"Alfred F. Jones, Your Majesty!" he absolutely beamed. "Are you going to knight me or something? That'd be awesome!"

The king's smile seemed to waver at hearing the word "awesome". At least he had no doubt this boy was a friend of Gilbert's. King Guardia nodded, plastering the smile back on his face. "If that's what you wish, so be it!" The chancellor arrived bearing a golden sword, encrusted with rubies and other precious metals to form the Guardian crest- a proud golden lion on a crimson shield.

Without having to be prompted to do so, Gilbert and every other soldier present drew their blades as Alfred knelt down, smiling like a silly school girl.

_On this day, in the 600__th__ year of Our Lord, I hereby name thee, Alfred F. Jones, Protector of the Faith and Defender of Our Guardia. From this day forth, thou art a knight of the kingdom…._

((((()))))

"I'M A KNIGHT," Alfred gushed, full of childish excitement. He practically pranced down the stairs leading to the castle entrance. "I've gotta tell my mom! I've gotta tell _Arthur!_ Ha, that guy's gonna be so _jealous!_"

"You can't tell anyone, Alfred!" Matthew chided. His voice was nearly lost in Gilbert's laugh and Bela's exasperated sigh.

Gilbert elbowed him good-naturedly. "Come on, Matthew! Cut the kid a break. I was just as excited as him when I was dubbed a knight. Besides, you're one, too! Shouldn't you be happy?" Sure enough, Gilbert's spirits had instantly lightened after Alfred and Matthew were officially dubbed knights of Guardia, and Bela named a Lady and given one of queen's more modest dresses to wear in place of her other one.

Alfred's grin soon faded as he followed Matthew into coming to a stop. Before the double doors leading to the castle courtyard outside, Alfred turned with a frown. "Actually, he has a good point. I guess we'd be crazy if we went around calling ourselves knights at home."

Gilbert slightly gaped. "Wait a minute… you weren't kidding about being from the future, were you."

He shrugged.

"Then… then Magus is really going to be defeated? We're going to win the war? Like awesome heroes? Alfred. Might I just say how _awesome _you are," Gilbert awed. "You've given me directions to Magus's keep! The mountain south of Denadorino! That's where he's at!"

"YOU TOLD HIM?" Matthew burst.

"I had to! Otherwise, he wouldn't come with me!"

"Al, you've totally screwed up history! What if Gilbert's not the knight of legend-"

"Ooh, there's a knight of legend? That's awesome, too! I'm absolutely this awesome knight of legend!"

"But you're not-"

Bela groaned into her hands. "_Children_," she snapped, cutting them off. She crossed her arms and looked pointedly to Matthew. "Your stupid father and contraption got me into this mess. Take. Me. Back."

Gilbert slid up Alfred with a snicker. "Oh, she is definitely one to keep."

"The phrase is 'she's a keeper', my friend."

"Alfred, shut up! Take me back NOW."

Gilbert moved out of the way and gave them a salute. Alfred mimicked him. "Good luck, Gil!" he called as Matthew withdrew… a wand? After defensively defending his masterpiece, he typed in _1000_ on a slender keypad. The wand sparked, but Matthew was completely unfazed. Making even Gilbert go paler than normal, a small portal appeared at their feet. Alfred gave one last wave before cannon-balling in. Bela followed him, and Matthew gave his own shy goodbye.

As soon as they were gone, a thousand pictures flashed in Gilbert's head. Each were of a similar dark, swirling hole appearing before various fuzzy figures dressed in similar regal garb. Most of them looked barely old enough to hold the high positions they had, such as Gilbert, who was probably no more than sixteen. With the entire area collapsing and being pulled at from the portals, it was amazing Gilbert could focus on one face, and one face only.

Just mere feet away from him stood a panicking boy, stuttering in horror at the portal forming at his feet. Gilbert lunged for him, but the blonde was sucked through. Seconds later, so was Gilbert.

Fritz invaded his mind, pushing him down to his knees. Gilbert clutched at his head, feeling as though it could split open any moment now, but he couldn't push Fritz's smile and that boy's terrified expression out of his head- the very same boy from his dream that had been staring at his knighting.

Right before it all proved too much and he passed out, a name came to mind, bringing with it a kind of fury he didn't feel even for Magus.

_Ludwig._

((((()))))

Bela landed with a thud on the courtyard tiling. The happy chatter that bombarded her ears assured her she was back home. Bela pushed herself up-

And came face to face with an entire line of Guardian soldiers. A very un-princess-like word came out of her mouth. Two soldiers rushed forward to apprehend Alfred and Matthew. From the behind the line came a skinny man, his glasses low on his pointy nose. "Princess Natalya," he began in the tone that utterly annoyed her. "We have successfully captured the terrorists that abducted you. Thankfully, they have done us the favor of returning you safe and sound before we had to sniff them out. Now, let us be off. Your father has worried for you."

Alfred stared at her in complete shock. "_Princess Natalya?_"

"You couldn't figure that out?" she growled.

Before anything else could be said, the soldiers shoved them forward, and the chancellor took Natalya's wrist, leading her along.

Alfred had a feeling this was not the time to tell them he had just been knighted.


	3. Chapter 3

**And again, I show off my amazing knowledge of how a court case happens! XD Again, I took some liberties with the plot, but it should be more or less kinda canon. Since it's unlikely that real prisoners would be able to carry weapons with them, I changed that part around too.**

**Chapter 3-**

Alfred hated the Guardian court system.

As if the jury couldn't be more corrupt (they had even appointed his old fourth grade teacher that hated him as a juror), the judge had practically made up his mind on a verdict before Matthew and Alfred's lawyers had even arrived. Alfred's mother was either not informed of her son's trial or they didn't allow her to be present. The same could be said of Francis and Matthew's mother.

In fact, Alfred knew no one that was in the courtroom, aside from their lawyer.

Lars van Houten was perhaps the worst part of this whole ordeal. Alfred had known Lars since he was kid. Before his dad died, he had once been business partners with Lars, a "lowly" merchant who swore up and down he was absolutely not in the black market business. Almost two days after this declaration, he was indicted for selling fake Denadorite jewelry. How Lars was now a lawyer and fighting for justice was beyond Alfred's comprehension. Matthew didn't appear to understand how that happened either.

Their lawyer approached them with a toothpick in his mouth, compensating for the pipe he wasn't allowed to bring into court. As always, his blonde cowlick was slicked up for the occasion. "So," Lars began, speaking lowly, "you just couldn't stop at Alice, could you, Jones."

Alfred's face turned an interesting red color as Matthew faced him in confusion. "I was a_ kid_, Lars."

"Whatever. Anyway, I'm helping you 'cause I owe your dad. Both you and your buddy are going to be heroes once I'm done here. Any other chick issues you get into are to be handled on your own."

"I swear, I didn't do anything to your sister!"

"Shut it before I ruin your lives."

He did as was told and furiously ignored Matthew's scandalized stare. Seriously, Alice was _not _his fault. And, technically, Alice broke up with _him. _Thus, not Alfred's fault. "While we're rotting in jail," Matthew hissed, "I better know why our lawyer hates your guts."

The judge pounded his gavel, echoing through the already solemn, silent court. Only sneered, accusing whispers could be heard and were instantly silenced when the chancellor stepped into the limelight. He was acting as the prosecutor, since the king and all of the princess's attendants were busy helping Natalya through her "trauma". Geez, they were acting like she had really been kidnapped!

Alfred bit the inside of his cheek. Well… she had disappeared about four hundred years into the past, so Alfred supposed he could see where they were coming from.

"Alfred F. Jones and Matthew Will-"

"Bonnefoy," he quietly said, adverting his eyes.

The Judge spared him a short glare. "And Matthew Williams, how do you plead?"

"Innocent," Alfred sighed, already knowing it was futile. Matthew merely nodded in agreement, already mentally preparing himself for whatever punishment they were going to throw at him.

The chancellor grinned. Obviously this was the highlight of his day: belittling Guardia's youth. He cleared his throat and began his sermon. "Your Honor, I have accumulated a line of witnesses that attended Mr. William's sideshow at the fair where Her Highness, Princess Natalya was abducted. We also have countless witnesses that claim to have seen Mr. Jones dragging the princess around, pretending to have no idea who she was."

"I _didn't _know who she was!" Alfred interrupted in his defense. Lars sent him a positively murderous look. Alfred quietly apologized.

The smile on the chancellor's face only grew. "As I was saying, Your Honor, there is plenty of evidence against these two deplorable threats to society."

That was a new one. Even Lars had to hide a chuckle at that. Alfred had been called a lot of things, but never a deplorable threat to society. Matthew looked like he had just been slapped. Of course, Matthew was practically a saint compared to Alfred, and _definitely _to Francis. This was going to absolutely kill him.

Still locked away in his glee, the chancellor gave a sickeningly bright grin to the boys before allowing Lars to speak his peace.

Matthew bowed his head and began to pray.

Alfred hadn't noticed it before, but Lars still seemed to be as tall and menacing as when he was a kid. Being a man who single-handedly ran Truce's black market, raised his little sister all on his own, and now managed to land a gig as a lawyer, Lars was obviously more than a little intimidating. But now, instead of glaring the jury into deciding them not guilty, Lars cleared his throat.

"These two are not deplorable threats to society, as our loving chancellor has made them out to be," the blonde began, face devoid of any previous hint of humor. I have my own witnesses that can vouch for their character and Alfred's dullness, proving they are clearly not criminal material. Beginning with Alfred- having known him for quite a while, I know for a fact he couldn't have plotted something as devious as the abduction of the princess. Seriously, this is the kind of kid you'd see running around, handing missing kitties to crying little girls."

No one's _they're so guilty _faces appeared to change. However, the judge had rested his chin on his palm. Lars continued anyway, calling for his first witness.

At first, Alfred didn't recognize the sandy-haired girl, dressed in an elegant dress and overcoat. Her hair was braided, but some strands had escaped and now framed her face. "May I introduce Ms. Monica Desrosiers. She was an eye witness who saw Alfred and the princess together at Antonio Carriedo's stall at the fair."

Ah, that was right! She was the bored assistant sitting in the shade reading a book. Alfred was surprised he hadn't noticed her before. Like Lars, Monica had an impressive legacy as one of Truce's most infamous. She was the country's best gambler, stinking rich from the hard earned money of anyone stupid enough to play a game with her. Helping Antonio was probably just a day job to occupy her time.

"Why is he bringing in criminals to help our case?" Matthew muttered under his breath.

"Monica has the best poker face ever. Let him work," Alfred replied, just as inconspicuously.

Sure enough, Monica described Alfred's visit and how he spent more time looking at Antonio's wares than paying attention to the princess. If she had wanted to, she could have run away. Thus, if he was stupid enough to allow her to run away, he was far too dense to plan a kidnapping.

Alfred would have liked to disagree with that, but he was frankly too afraid to open his mouth again with Lars in such close range. He could easily knock him out and continue the trial without any more interruptions. Alfred would have liked to be conscious for their sentencing.

The chancellor huffily called for an objection. Lars was severely annoyed, but kept his murderous glare down to an irritated scowl. "It is far too obvious Alfred didn't plan the kidnapping! However, that cannot be used as a viable statement because his accomplice is the most talented inventor Truce has seen in the past twenty years- obviously someone intelligent!"

"Matthew has better character than anyone I've met in a long time," Lars shot back. "Everyone knows how the kid is a saint. He donates most of the money he and his father earn to the lower class. He stays after school to read to the preschool children. Does that sound like someone that would plot to kidnap the princess?"

Finally, the jury erupted in low murmurs. Alfred swelled with pride as they began to have second thoughts about all of this- perhaps it was just another misadventure of the princess's, and they were unfortunately involved.

However, once again, the chancellor spoke up. Matthew couldn't help but shiver at the icy smile on his face. "True, his character is impressive. However, Your Honor and ladies and gentlemen of the jury, their outstanding performances in society merely mask what occurs behind their doors."

Matthew went pale.

"Let us take for instance Matthew's adoptive mother, who spends her days crippled because he-"

"STOP!" Matthew bellowed, slamming his hands down on the podium before him.

Every activity in the courtroom ceased. The toothpick Lars had been chewing fell out of his mouth. Even Alfred was stunned. Jeanne had been paralyzed from an accident, but Matthew hadn't had anything to do with it. He was no more than six-years-old, recently adopted, when it happened. But his clenched jaw and narrowed eyes seemed to tell a different story that agreed with the chancellor.

The smug look on the chancellor's face didn't fade when he nodded in mock politeness, sweetly apologizing for bringing up such an emotionally challenging subject. Murmuring between the jurors commenced once Matthew wilted, squeezing his eyes shut. "I'm sorry I blew it, Al," the blonde tightly sighed.

It took Alfred a moment to figure out how to shake his head again. "No big deal! Besides, Lars and Monica have them on our side now, right? We're totally-"

"The jury has reached a unanimous decision. The defendants are found guilty of treason, and are charged with the kidnapping of the princess. For their crimes they are sentenced to death by guillotine in three days' time."

They were totally _not_ good.

((((()))))

There was a lovely basket waiting for Alfred when he was unceremoniously tossed into a cell. Moments after, Matthew was thrown into the one beside him. Alfred waited for the guards to leave before he finally released his pent up curse. He grabbed for the basket, filled with delicious loaves of bread- but upon finding the food, he decided not to throw it after all. "Hey, Mattie," he called. "Did _you _get food?"

"Alfred, shut up."

"No need to fussy, dude. Come on, I'm a hero, remember? I'm a knight too- both of us are! I'll devise a plan to break us out-"

"We're not going to get out of this!"

He fell silent, sullenly looking back to his bread. The loaves were small and still slightly warm. They were probably put here before the trial was over, further proving it was inevitable that they would be sentenced guilty. But who would do something like this? Who in Truce still liked him after this fiasco?

However, Alfred wasn't one to question food when it came free. He took a bite of the first loaf.

He bit something metal. Alfred drew back to see the end of a tiny knife baked into the bread.

This was good news. He quickly broke apart the others, but there was only one more dagger to be found. Both were quite unspectacular, just simple knives one would find in a kitchen. Kitchen knives….

"Mattie, Natalya's helping us!" Alfred burst, sticking his face on his cell bars in an attempt to see Matthew. It proved to be in vain, but his good mood wasn't hampered in the least. There was no doubt this was from Natalya. Maybe it was her way of repaying them for saving her in the past? Again, it didn't matter, though. He knew a thing or two about picking locks, and these knives could do just the trick. Alfred immediately set to work, promising to have them free in no time!

((((()))))

At least five hours had to have passed. Matthew had spent most his time in silence, staring out at the evening sky and straining to hear the sounds of venders packing up their wares for the night at the fair. Was his father there, still wondering when they would come back- if ever? Matthew had no doubt the guards hadn't told him. Francis would have already tried to break into the castle had that been the case. Virginia would have _successfully _broken in, but only because her desire to strangle Alfred could overpower even the most adamant soldiers.

Lastly, Matthew thought about his mother, and wondered if she knew her son wasn't going to be coming home to wheel her down to dinner.

Furious tears pricked at the corner of his eyes. How had the chancellor known what had really happened back then? Not even Jeanne was entirely sure of what had happened. Francis had been on a trip out of town. As far as Matthew was concerned, he was the only one present during the accident that took his mother's legs.

_How did he know?_

Alfred's furious cry jarred him from his thoughts. Matthew didn't get up from his seat on the rickety bed, but he did raise his head. "Alfred, enough is enough. You're not going to pick the lock."

"I will!" he stubbornly argued. "Natalya's probably waiting for us to escape so we can all run away together!"

Did he even listen to himself? Natalya was the one to get them into this mess in the first place! Matthew had liked her and all, don't get him wrong. Being his princess gave her brownie points. But this was starting to be ridiculous- both her idea and Alfred's. Say Alfred did pick the lock. What were odds of him single handedly fighting off the stream of guards that would chase after him? Alfred couldn't fight with a knife. He was a good shot, however, but Matthew's gun had been confiscated ages ago. Natalya _had _been good with a knife, and the guards would be less willing to kill the princess.

The problem that lay with that idea was the fact that _she wasn't here right now._

Alfred kicked the bars in his frustration, sending loud vibrations through every cell in the room, seemingly connected somehow. Matthew could even hear a faint echo of the noise upstairs.

Matthew's eyes went wide as a thought occurred to him. He trailed the bars where they did indeed enter through the stone ceiling to form the next cell bars. Only the doors were disconnected from each other, but a short area above the door was a conjoining piece that helped support the barred sides around the door.

"Alfred, kick that again," he quietly ordered, finally getting up. Alfred did as he was told, and the frame shook again. The doors only slightly rattled, but that was a good sign. Matthew reached up as far as he could to examine the door hinges. Like the rest of the cell, they were awfully rusty. So rusty, in fact, they might be able to break if enough force was put upon them.

Matthew broke into a smile. Perhaps they had a chance of breaking out after all. He couldn't contain himself as he spewed out his plan to Alfred in the lonely silence of the room. "It's going to be almost like how the sounds reverberating from the organ opened the door in Manolia," Matthew explained. "I'm going to keep kicking the bars while you saw at the door hinges. Mine are extremely rusty, so yours should be in a similar state. When you break through the hinges, you should be able to push your way through the door. You'll give me a knife and I'll break out the same way. The beauty of this plan is that while we're shaking the bars, the bars on every other level will also shake, confusing the guards. We should have enough time while they're distracted to escape."

It was impossible to see Alfred's face, but he did stick out his arm to let him see the thumb's up he was receiving. "Mattie, dude, you're awesomer than Gilbert."

"So long as you never mention the two in same sentence again, we are in agreement."

They were quickly losing outside light as Alfred worked, long and tedious. Matthew's foot was past the hurting stage and was now uncomfortably numb. Finally, Matthew heard a loud creak, and Alfred's grinning face entered his line of vision. He handed off the knife and Matthew gratefully allowed him to take over shaking the bars. He had only the dim candlelight to work by, but Matthew too had sawed through the hinges and squeezed himself through the opening.

The two spared a moment to cheer- Alfred picked Matthew up and swung him around in a hug that honestly constricted his breath and made him feel sick to his stomach. But after Alfred finally released him and Matthew taught his lungs how to work again, they took off running the way they had came earlier that morning. The dark corridors worked to their advantage quite well, for they were able to sneak past the few severely annoyed and yawning guards they saw.

When they finally reached the last heavy door leading to the interior of the castle, Alfred crushed him once more and swung open the door.

To say they were disheartened to see a circle of guards sharing gossip was a bit of an understatement.

((((()))))

Natalya wandered the halls aimlessly with two of her handmaidens as escorts. Her father had denied her the right to even traverse her castle by herself. The young girls nervously echoing in her brisk steps were obviously apprehensive of the princess. They had been before, but now….

The princess paused, and they took a sharp inhale. "I don't mean to frighten you," Natalya sighed. "And I'm sorry my father is making you follow me. You're not bound to silence or anything, so can talk all you want."

They seemed to prefer silence. Ignoring her voluminous, lacy skirt, Natalya leaned against the wall, the flickering lights reflecting off of her dress to make it seem she was swathed in Guardia's maroon and gold colors. "I know you're dying to know what happened to me," she began, taking at look at her nails. Even with all of the forceful scrubbing they had received, there were still traces of dirt underneath- proof that her escapades in the past really had happened.

Alfred and Matthew popped into her head.

The girls visibly shuddered at her frown. "Why are you so frightened of me?" Natalya burst, causing them to yelp. "Do you think I'm some sort of monster for running away from this life? If you want it, I'll gladly trade with either of you. Marle."

The blonde in question snapped her head up, eyes wide.

"Say you were the princess instead of me. If you were cooped up in a palace, going though the same mundane occurrences day after day, would you want to see the outside world as well?"

Marle opened her mouth, then shut it, biting on her lip. Finally, much to her companion's surprise, she nodded. "I-I would want to leave too. Because… because outside _is_ better than in here. I used to live in Truce before I came to work here. It's a wonderful place, Princess. One day… one day, perhaps, you can come with me to visit my family?"

Natalya was just as stunned as Marle's friend. Natalya didn't quite know her name yet, because she was a new girl. The princess shook her head incredulously. "Marle… I would honestly love to. But the last person that showed me around town- at least, around the fair- was in a trial this morning. He was finally found not guilty, but I couldn't allow that to happen to you as well."

"Princess… the two you were with were not found innocent," Marle slowly said. "They were sentenced to an execution in three days' time."

Her heart stopped beating for a moment as all of the color drained from her already pale face. Marle and the other girl caught her as her knees buckled. "They're going to die?" Natalya whispered. "My father had them sentenced to death?"

When she was sat on the floor to be fanned, Natalya felt her cold knife touch her leg. She always kept it with her, no matter the occasion, hidden under her dress. Today's battle with that mystic had only made her more willing to keep it with her.

That's right… she had defended Queen Leene from a mystic intent on killing her. Natalya had quite a while before Alfred, Matthew, and Gilbert appeared to save them. Natalya had done the impossible, so why couldn't do the same again? She looked down the hall. There was a staircase that led to the royal courtroom and, further on, to the prison wing. Natalya had snuck out of the castle, so it would be easy to sneak into prison. From what she had heard of Matthew's brilliance, he had probably already found a way to free them. Without Natalya's help, though, they couldn't hope to make it out of the winding castle.

"I know what I'm about to ask you may frighten you," Natalya hurriedly said, "but I need one of you to dress up as me."

Marle and the girl met each other's eyes. Natalya painstakingly waited as they silently thought this over. When Marle turned back to her and nodded, Natalya felt an unknown warmth wash over her. She absently realized Marle was one of her only friends- if not the only one she had. "The servants' quarters are right over here," Marle pointed.

Natalya rushed inside with Marle as the other girl remained outside on lookout.

When they emerged, it was almost difficult to discern who was princess and who was the lowly handmaiden, wearing a humble maid's uniform. Natalya gave the girls her thanks and a promise to come back one day to see them.

Marle made for a good princess, Natalya thought as she hurried to the prison wing. If the kingdom was ruled by someone as free-spirited and nice as her, Guardia would be a much better place.

Natalya wasted no time in throwing open the door to the prison wing. She almost didn't have to think before she swung out her fist to knock out the first guard, conveniently not looking in her direction. When he crumpled to the ground, the rest of the guards took notice of her, as well as two others donned in normal garb.

That was perfect timing on Alfred and Matthew's parts. Alfred flashed her a smile before knocking out the closest guard to him, hitting the man with the butt of a dagger. Between the two of them, with minimal help from Matthew who generally shied away from the violence, they had the entire room unconscious before anyone had any time to call for backup.

Alfred rushed forward to hug her, but Natalya easily punched him in the gut and turned to Matthew. "I'm curious as to how you got out. I expect a story once we're out of the castle."

Natalya led them through the twisting, grand hallways with expertise. Despite their efforts to knock out the guards, it didn't take very long for word to catch on that Guardia Castle's newest prisoners were leading a jailbreak. Thankfully, most of the soldiers were terribly out of shape from milling about a mostly uneventful castle, so it was easy for them to outrun them.

They had made it all the way to the palace foyer when they were surrounded. Natalya, Alfred, and Matthew stood back-to-back as they brandished their respective blades to the unflinching palace guards. The massive oak doors leading to the throne room opened wide, stealing everyone's attention.

"Natalya Inna Arlovskaya Guardia!"

Natalya didn't flinch like the others upon hearing her father's booming voice. She whirled around, locking onto his scowling face with a perfectly good glare of her own. A hush fell over everyone present as she took a defiant step forward. "Father, I can no longer remain here living as your marionette. You sentenced my friends to death because you knew nothing of their time alone with me? We were just at the fair, having fun!"

"That is the problem, young lady. You are a princess. You are not to-"

"Perhaps I don't wish to be a princess!" she interrupted. "It's not like I have any royal blood anyway!"

At the King's stunned gape, the crowded multitude erupted into murmurs and whisperings.

Natalya stood tall and proudly. "Before Mother died, she told me everything. I am not the daughter you had, because the real princess Natalya died. I'm merely a replacement for the daughter you were never meant to have."

She took the guard's shock as an opportunity to throw open the doors and run. Alfred and Matthew followed as soon as their astonishment also wore off.

"Turn left!" Natalya called. She came to a stop in the middle of a clearing. The sounds of dozens of soldiers running after them were growing louder by the second. "Matthew! Do you still have your time machine thing?"

"What?" he burst. "Na- er, Princess-"

"My name is Natalya."

Matthew gulped at her growl. He uncertainly pulled out the Gate Key, which had been sure to keep extra well-hidden. "We can't just go through time when we feel like it. We could seriously mess up the space-time continuum-"

"There they are!"

Natalya stole the key from him, furious typing in a date. Matthew scrambled to get it back, and Alfred worriedly yelped, "Just push the button!"

On complete accident, Matthew did push the button. A time portal fizzled into existence before them, instantly sucking them in.

By the time the Gaurdian soldiers reached the clearing, there was nothing to be found but a navy ribbon.

((((()))))

"Oh no, Monica, I think someone stole some blades from me!" Antonio anxiously twittered as he began packing up his things for the night. Two of his daggers were missing, and he was sure he hadn't sold them!

Monica Desrosiers shrugged, not completely paying attention to his nervous breakdown. Antonio would be back to normal in five, four, three…-

"Oh well," the swordsmith sighed, shaking his head. "I guess one or two little daggers can't cause a lot of problems. I mean, people get arrested for carrying weapons in Truce, right? But I won't get in trouble because I'm a Medinan ambassador. _Sí,_ it's alright!"

He put all of his wares into several briefcases. Monica put down her book and helped him carry it all back to his inn room. Before the castle was completely out of sight, she turned to give it an appraising look. Francis had struck her quite the deal for her services, and Arthur had done well to allow Lars the opportunity to scope things out. Of course, they hadn't succeeded in proving Alfred and Matthew innocent, but the daggers she gave them should have proved to be useful.

Monica just hoped Francis and Arthur were right about all of this- about all of them knowing each other in another life. They claimed Antonio knew about it too, but he didn't want to get involved. Bad history, they said. Lars and Monica were the only ones they could trust because of this.

Antonio cheerfully said his goodbye, thanking her for all of her help. Monica took it with a small smile.

When she turned to leave, she couldn't stop thinking of the riches Francis had promised her.


	4. Chapter 4

**FINALLY THE PLOT BEGINS TO PICK UP! AND MORE CHARACTERS ARE INTRODUCED! XD**

**I screwed up one of the characters- a **_**main **_**character, because I simply couldn't imagine the person as a robot. It conflicted with too many plot points, so I had to make the individual remain human.**

**Random bit here, but has anyone else heard that Disney bought Lucas Films? They're supposedly making an Episode Seven to Star Wars. My mind has officially been blown. **

**Chapter 4-**

The room was cold and lifeless. Not even the rats bothered to look for food in this particular dome. Surely this facility hadn't been blessed by the touch of the living in years. The air was stagnant, having been left undisturbed for so long. When the young man succeeded in prying the door open, the dead air washed over his face, bringing with it the sick taste of death.

It didn't particularly bother him, however. Anyone unused to death obviously hadn't gotten a good look of their surroundings or peers. But, unlike so many of the others, he hadn't given up hope of a day that would bring happiness and life back to the despondent world he called home.

The key to that happiness could be found only here in Keeper's Dome.

The young man had done his research about this area and peculiarity of its location from available source he could get his hands on. For some reason, natural electrical currents ran to this location more often than any other easily accessible place on the continent. If he could find a way to tamper with this strange flow and redirect it to the inhabited domes, he could employ his heating system and reboot the refrigeration system to ensure no one would be dying of the cold or of starvation this winter. There were few children in the domes, but they were his main concern as he first checked the area for any coats or blankets.

He couldn't bear to lose any of them after losing a dear child of his own.

Xiao Mei hadn't actually been his daughter- he was far too young for that. But he supposed she had been something like it since he was left to care for her and….

He shook his head. It was still too hard to remember anyone but Xiao Mei, so he didn't try as hard as he probably should have. Instead, he focused himself solely upon the task at hand.

She was gone, but there were others that were now dependant upon him.

He absolutely could not let them down.

The young man gripped the hilt of his sword- he had stolen it from the ruins of an apartment complex. Apparently the apartment's occupant or occupants had been an avid sword collector. Most were cheap knock-offs of the Great Antonio's works, but since they had real blades that could be sharpened enough to be lethal, the young man didn't complain.

He gingerly pushed on the only door left to be explored.

His heart momentarily stopped to find he wasn't alone. The twenty-something-year-old stood in front of a dimmed computer absently flickering with weak electrical current. The power source he had detected must have come from this man. He breathlessly waited to be noticed, but the red-headed man didn't turn around. Instead, he leisurely typed. Across his shoulder, he could see what looked like nothing more than gibberish.

_Palace in the Ocean. Everyone goes. Black Hawk flies away. I'm left behind. Always left behind. Always left behind. Always left be_

"Excuse me. Who are you?" the young man in the doorway cautiously asked. The other merely continued to despondently type the same message over and over as if it were all his mind could currently process. A frown came over his face. "Excuse me? What is… 'Palace in the Ocean'?"

The man abruptly turned around. His amber eyes were wide in terror. "Don't go to the palace!" he pleaded, rushing to the young man and grabbing his shoulders. "You can't go! I told them it was a bad idea. I told them not to listen to the king! I'm sorry, Katyusha! I'm sorry I couldn't stop it-"

He suddenly burst into tears, burying his face into the young man's shoulder. "I-I…!"

Nervously, he patted the sobbing man on the back. "I-it's alright. I won't go to the palace, I promise."

"You can't go," he miserably repeated. "You can't go, Kiku."

Kiku froze. He pushed the man away from him, instantly apologizing when he fell back on the floor. However, Kiku stopped himself from picking the man up. "How do you know my name?" he demanded, hand reaching for his blade again. "Who are you?"

"Another life. Another life we left behind. I'm always left behind." With that said, he picked himself off of the floor, not bothering to shake the dust off of his bright, foreign clothing. He went back to his computer and began jadedly typing some more.

_Draw a circle, that's the earth. I miss you. With love, Lovino. Always left behind._

((((()))))

Matthew woke himself up with his shivering. He hugged himself before managing to creak open his eyes and take in a scene that managed to both terrify him and amaze him. His body was stiff from the cold and from lying in the same position for quite a while. Thankfully, as evidenced by Natalya and Alfred's stirring, they hadn't been split up again. Matthew's mood further dropped when he realized he could see his breath.

Where in the world had they ended up? The metal walls made the already cold temperature considerably drop even more- if they didn't find a way to a less-deadly outside, Matthew was sure they would meet their deaths from hypothermia rather than a guillotine.

"Alfred," he urgently whispered, shaking his friend into complete consciousness. "Alfred!"

"Ugh, who forgot to tend to the fire last night?" he moaned, promptly pulling his jacket tighter around him. "Uh, it wasn't my fault."

"Obviously," Matthew snapped. He instantly winced, his panic getting the better of himself. The blonde calmed himself down and gently shook Natalya's shoulder. "Pri- Natalya. You need to wake up."

Alfred nervously took in the scene with a frown. "This place looks like your junkyard, Mattie, but colder and darker."

Really, it sort of did. The metal area was mostly devoid of… well, _everything_. What little had remained were large, broken machines reminiscent of some of Matthew and Francis's previous ideas or failed projects. Some were so advanced that Matthew hadn't even considered the possibility of their existence or help- like the thin, cracked screen of a machine that contained a keyboard and a large podium-like object that seemed to be the source of its power. The entire area was a dome-like shape, and the surviving furniture included abstract art and translucent pieces of technology. This place had centuries' worth of advancement.

Matthew instantly covered his eyes. "Darn it, Alfred! Why did you make me look? What if I screw up everything by recreating this stuff? I could start wars and disasters and-"

Alfred left him to spaz and joined Natalya in examining the room in awe. "I suppose we've landed in the future?" she absently wondered. Finally, she took notice of Matthew's worried muttering. Natalya grabbed his wrist and pulled him along. "Shut up a minute! Ugh, I can't even hear myself think with this."

"Guys, calm down," Alfred butted in. He paused a moment before suggesting they go outside. Alfred furrowed his eyebrows. "Okay. Why am _I _the one breaking up _your _fights, Mattie? Ain't that supposed to be your job?"

It didn't take long for them to reach outside after narrowly avoiding some fights.

Unfortunately, outside the dome wasn't a warmer, happier scene. Snow swirled around in a darkened, cloudy sky reigning over a dry and barren wasteland. Broken rectangular buildings lay crashed into the ground, large metal things with wheels lay overturned or smashed into one another. There were other domes similar to the one they had landed in, but they were each just as broken and derelict as everything else in the shattered scene. Weary, brown patches of grass lay wilted and withering at their feet, slowly retracting into an eternal sleep as the snow overcame them.

Alfred shook his head, trying to convince himself this was not real. "Where are we, Mattie?" he asked in a small voice.

Matthew swallowed hard and shakily reached for the gate key. He ripped his eyes away from the post-apocalyptic scene and looked at the screen. It had a tiny crack in it- he had probably landed on it when they arrived. However, he could still see the year: 2300 A.D.

"…1300 years in the future?" Natalya awed, her voice almost snatched away by the wind.

More forcefully, Alfred shook his head. "No. That thing's obviously screwed up. This can't be the future! I'm obviously dreaming or something- I KNOW! I'm still asleep, waiting for Mom to come in and shove me out of bed-"

"That's too cliché to be possible, Al," Matthew lightly reminded him. He solemnly put the gate key back in a pocket inside his jacket. Even though he had more warmth than Natalya and Alfred, it didn't seem to be doing any good against the insane cold.

He suppressed a shiver and peered past the haze and snow to see a faint outline of another dome, this one more intact than the others. There seemed to be a path of sorts leading to it, created by moving debris out of the way. That couldn't have happened accidentally. There had to have been people to do it. "Let's head this way," Matthew suggested, trudging off. When Alfred caught up to him, he was violently shivering and coat-less compared to an only slightly shivering coated Natalya, quickly falling into line next to them.

Always a hero.

((((()))))

A hundred dead eyes peered back at them when they entered the dome. The ragged, thin mass briefly, silently regarded Alfred, Matthew, and Natalya before going back to their businesses. Matthew tugged Alfred along, still frozen in his spot, staring out in horror at the pitiful sight before him. One boy, looking around fifteen or so, looked up from his spot on the floor. A few of his measly belonging lay around him- two broken figurines of fighters and a foreign-looking red sash, neatly folded beside him.

"You guys aren't from around here," the dark-haired boy commented.

Alfred forced himself to nod. "I guess you could say that. We came from the north."

"Bangor Dome. Cool. This is Trann Dome. Hey, you got any food?" he abruptly asked, sticking out his hand expectantly.

Alfred pulled out half of one of the loaves of bread from his jail time. The boy scarfed it down faster than Alfred ever could- and that was definitely saying something. After licking his fingers, the boy rose and gave a strict bow. "Thanks, dude. I'm Jia Long. Wang Jia Long. Doesn't matter though. Anyway, if you got food, you're definitely not from around here. Do you, like, happen to know Kiku?"

"Kiku?" Natalya asked.

Jia Long put his hand level to about his nose. "He's a guy about this tall, black hair in a bowl cut, goes on and on about saving the planet and stuff? Huh. Guess you don't know him."

Cutting them off once more, Jia Long reached out and tugged at Natalya's hair. "You seriously wash your hair? What a waste of water. But I guess that's to be expected." Jia Long snatched up one of the action figures and examined it critically. He scrubbed off the dirt on its face with the baggy sleeve of his jacket. "So, you three are from the past too."

Matthew's first instinct was to glare at Alfred, who was usually responsible for something like this, but he had yet to really say anything. However, he was just as dumbfounded as Matthew and Natalya. The princess grabbed Jia Long's collar, bring his unchangingly emotionless face to her nose. "How do you know that?" she sweetly snarled.

He inaudibly pointed to her shining hair, clean clothes, and to her nicely manicured fingernails. "Unless, of course, you guys, like, know about a place the apocalypse didn't obliterate?"

Natalya let out a tight sigh and released the completely unfazed boy. Jia Long didn't bother to fix his collar back, instead choosing to give Alfred and Matthew a good once-over. "Dude. Don't you have a coat? Here. You're not used to the cold," Jia Long said, shrugging his own jacket off and presenting it to Alfred. Jia Long turned and walked off before Alfred could argue about taking it. The jacket was almost too small, but it was warm and Alfred wasn't about to complain.

As they followed after Jia Long, no one spared them even a curious glance. People huddled into groups around weak, quickly retreating flames. Some stood in line before a large rounded machine. Matthew watched in fascination as one person stepped inside, closed the door on his or her self, then walked out looking brighter and healthier.

"It's called an Enertron," Jia Long explained, stopping his pace to finally allow them to catch up. For a starving post-apocalyptic survivor, Jia Long could pretty fast. He continued, "It emits a gas made up of a bunch of vaporized vitamins and stuff that makes you feel better. Doesn't help the hunger, though, but it's kept us alive. My _Fùqīn_ invented it. He's in another dome across the ruins- the biggest one with the most people. Kiku took him there. He said he knew him from 'that other place', or whatever. But Kiku's a cool guy, even if he is a little crazy. Then again, we're all kinda crazy here."

Alfred could believe that. All of this so far had only served to blow his mind. He wondered if that was how Gilbert had felt when Alfred told him about his future. Jia Long fell back against the metal wall, astounding the three by the way he could stand to lean against something so cold without a jacket. "How long has the storm outside gone on?" Matthew asked, once again unable to stop himself from eying the beautifully constructed dome. Even covered in rust and littered with stains and cracks, Matthew could see the genius in its design. He never could have come up with something like this!

"For as long as I can remember," Jia Long said. He suddenly frowned a moment, then shook his head. "Anyway, you should look for Kiku. I'm guessing you're not here to stay?"

"Is time travel possible for you people?" Natalya butted in, crossing her arms. Alfred's coat was far too large on her thin frame, making her appearance closer to the others' in the dome. Had it not been for her washed hair and clean hands, of course.

Jia Long shook his head. "It's not. I thought it was a myth until Kiku popped out of this huge portal thing. Like, it was real freaky. He muttered something about a 'Xiao Mei' and a 'Feliciano', then he passed out. When he woke up, he didn't remember anything but that he was from another time. You guys don't have amnesia, do you?"

The three nervously met each others' eyes. None of them _felt _like they had major gaps in their memory, but it was impossible to tell…. "We'll figure that out on the way. Um, your _Fùqīn_'s place. Where is that?"

"To the east, across Site 16. Can't miss it. Oh, and I hope one of guys know how to race, because no one is able to out-dance the guard. Deshad won't let you through unless you beat him." With that said, Jia Long pulled out a key from his pocket. He gave another bow, this one looser and with an elegant sweep. "Nice knowing you guys. Thanks for the bread."

((((()))))

Site 16 was the mother of debris and broken buildings. Alfred uneasily shuffled past a completely leveled building, almost stretching farther than he could see. Their height before they were knocked down must have towered into the sky, farther than the birds, so far up that the people below were just specks….

"You remember the stories I told you about that floating place, right, Mattie?" he asked, making Matthew flinch into attention.

The blonde quickly nodded. "You pestered me to death. I'm glad Arthur finally showed up at the fair so you could talk his ear off. Uh… you do remember Arthur, right?"

"Of course! How can you forget those huge eyebrows?"

As they fell into snickers, Natalya released another sigh. She didn't regret saving their lives, but going with them hadn't been the best idea she had ever had. What if, unlike them, she really did lose some of her memory? Alfred and Matthew couldn't help her if she had. They knew next to nothing about her. Then again… she really didn't know anything about them, either, aside from knowing that Matthew was obviously brilliant and Alfred was just too nice. What was with him, giving her his coat every time she looked bad-off? Natalya didn't care. She could have easily made it to the dome without his help or stupid coat.

A rumbling noise in the distance cut their snickering short. "Welcome, boys and girls!" an accented voice called from the dense rubble.

Two dimmed spotlights shot up in the distance, lighting up the overcast clouds. A whirring noise started up all around them, only growing louder when a beat started to pick up. The spotlights turned on them, momentarily blinding them. Alfred peeked through his fingers to see a figure walking towards them. "Cut the lights!" the person- a body to the bodiless voice from before- shouted. At his command, the spotlights shut up. Several metal animals rolled up behind them- the owners of the whirring.

"My name is Deshad Hiranandani," he introduced with a wink and tip of his ragged hat. "I suppose you've wandered into site 16 looking for a way to the next dome? It isn't very often I get company of any other sort- except for this one weird kid who wanted to go to the sewers."

The man wasn't fully a man- metal stuck to him in the oddest places, and one of his eyes had no eyelids and glowed a strange orange color. At their obviously freaked out expressions, Deshad frowned a little, as if slightly insulted. "You're with the bowl-cut kid, aren't you? He thought I was weird too. But he was a pretty good racer for being from the past. Time travel! Who'd have thought it was possible?"

"Kiku came through here?" Alfred asked, taking a brave step forward. "You said he went through the sewers- why?"

"To reach Keeper's Dome or Death Peak?" Deshad guessed, crossing his arms. When he did, his arms made a clanking noise, as if they were made of metal like everything else in this future.

Matthew was sure his mind had imploded once more. "You're half-metal! That's amazing! The metal is used as a prosthetic, right?"

Alfred sent him a look that instantly shut him up. Matthew ducked his head away. He had to remember to forget everything he was seeing here. If he created a metal prosthetic too early in time, he could really mess things up in the future. Not that the future was a lovely place anyway. "Sorry," he mumbled.

Deshad shook his head. "No, it's cool. I like your enthusiasm. But we've got ourselves a race to get forward to, don't we? Unless you all would like a dance off instead?"

The tons of robots around them unleashed a warped sound of applause. Deshad humbly grinned, waving them down. Heeding to Jia Long's advice, they respectfully declined. With a deflated sigh, Deshad waded through the sea of his robotic fan base to a blue machine equipped with four wheels, a large cushioned seat, and too many controls for them to hope to figure out.

"You guys look like you've never seen a racer, so I'll go easy on you. The wheel thingie steers it. We'll be racing in a straight line, so I doubt you'll really have to turn it. The silver pedals down there make the racer go really, really fast. You push down on those. You can play around with the knobs, but most of them are broken," Deshad explained. Once he herded the three of them inside and told them how a seat belt worked, he stepped into line beside them.

"Uh, where's your racer?" Alfred, who had been pushed into the driver's seat, uneasily asked. The future had held far too many surprises already, but Alfred was sure Deshad couldn't run as fast the racer could.

Deshad merely grinned. From his back popped out to pipes blacked by soot. He suddenly raised two inches as wheels popped out from his feet. "I _am _my racer. Alright, Johnny, give us a countdown!" Deshad called to one of the more humanoid robots.

Johnny wheeled in between them. "On my mark!" it grated out, voice recording fuzzy. From its back popped up a well-worn black and white checkered flag. "Ready! Set! Goooooo!"

Alfred slammed his foot into the silver pedal as instructed, and everything turned an interesting black as icy wind suddenly pelted his face.

((((()))))

"That was one of the best races ever!" Deshad burst when Alfred's racer suddenly began to slow down just outside of the ruins. Most of their terrifying ride had been spent neck-and-neck with Deshad, but Alfred wasn't exactly preoccupied with finding out who won the race. He felt sick from their joy ride, and was now sure he would kill Matthew if he ever accidentally invented a racer.

Deshad fixed himself back into normal shape, rushing over to grab Alfred's hand and shake it. "None of you normal fleshies ever go top speed! I think I almost busted an axle because of you!"

Somehow, Alfred had a feeling that wasn't a thing to be mentioned with a smile on his face, but Deshad didn't seem to care about his axle too much. Alfred pushed himself out of the racer and willed himself to keep his earlier lunch inside him, where it belonged. Natalya and Matthew stumbled out beside him.

"Did we win?" Natalya groggily asked, hand on her head in an attempt to make it stop spinning.

"Nope. But since I like you guys, you can go ahead."

Alfred looked up at that. "Seriously?" he grinned. "Dude, you're the coolest metal man I've ever met!"

"Thanks, man! Hey, I never caught your names, by the way."

With a smile, Alfred introduced himself, then Natalya and Matthew. Deshad's grin quickly fell away. "…The famous Princess Natalya Guardia that ran away? And Matthew Williams, the guy heralded as the 'Father of Mechanics'?"

"So I don't go back home?" Natalya seemed surprisingly a bit saddened at that.

Matthew, on the other hand, almost fainted on the spot. "I'm the F-Father of Mechanics?" he whispered.

Deshad nodded. "Yeah. I vaguely remember reading about you in class, back when we still had class. You changed everything people thought about technology with your inventions."

Alfred butted in, conveniently cutting Matthew's next sentence off. "What about me?" he demanded. "I'm an awesome hero, right? I'm famous too?"

"I've never heard of another Alfred F. Jones," Deshad shrugged. His arm popped as he dropped his shoulders. He winced in annoyance. "There goes my bolts again. You'd think I'd be in better shape since I haven't been used as an annoying party android in years. But I guess I eventually have to break too. Really, though, thanks so much for racing with me. Feel free to come back any time- and bring some oil, won't you? Kiku and the sewers are to the west of here. You might want to stop at Arris Dome first, though. You'll need some ammunition for the mutants."

"Mutants?"

((((()))))

They successfully reached Arris Dome, which was much bigger than the previous domes they had visited. There were no dimmed, flickering lights on in this building, causing the structure to emit an eerie, lonely vibe that almost held Alfred back. According to Jia Long and Deshad, however, there were people in this dome.

Compared to people in Arris Dome, everyone else they had seen thus far were happy and perfectly healthy. Alfred literally had to hold himself back from rushing forward to throw his coat at the motionless children huddled together by a dimmed fire. No one looked at them as they wondered in, eyes wide in utter horror at the state these people were in. There was absolutely no life in their eyes and lethargic actions, as if they had each given up hope long ago and now awaited the end.

Only one man was dressed in color and had a despondent expression on his face rather than a dead one. It also helped that he was practically an older version of Jia Long. "Are you Jia Long's _Fùqīn_?" Alfred quietly asked. His voice echoed through the dark walls of the dome. Again, no one seemed to react.

The man looked up and frowned distastefully. "Why would you come all this way from my son's dome? It was foolish of you to do so."

Alfred flinched as if he had been slapped. He couldn't place where it had started, but he felt himself flaring up with indignation. "Why would you leave him and come here? Did you want to run away and die or something?"

At that, the man's eyes widened. He shot up to his feet, but Alfred didn't flinch back. "I will not have you speak to me like that!" Yao shouted.

A little girl sitting near them looked up. Her dark hair was stringy and matted, falling in her face so it almost completely hid her dirtied face. She curiously watched Yao seethe with anger, as if it were the first time she ever witnessed such a show of emotion.

Yao jabbed his bony finger in Alfred's chest. "I came here with Kiku and Yong Soo hoping to fix things, but, as you can see, there's nothing that can help this place! The power is completely gone, Yong Soo has been missing in the basement for days looking for any trace of food, and Kiku decided to leave us to rot with the excuse of finding a power source! I did not leave so I could die, but I cannot change the way things are progressing!"

"You told me Yong Soo was coming back," the girl quietly spoke up.

Every bit of color drained from Yao's face when he turned to the girl. He knelt down and took her shoulders, stumbling over his words. Finally, he merely frowned.

"Don't worry," Alfred interjected, making both of them look up at him in surprise. "We'll find her for you!"

"Yong Soo is a boy," Yao deadpanned.

Alfred's forced grin didn't change. "We'll find _him _for you! I bet he just got lost of something, and he just needs to know you're doing fine so he can get back up here." He reached out for her hand. Gingerly, she put her cold hand on his. "I promise I'll find him for you. What's your name?"

"Bong Chung," the girl whispered uncertainly.

Alfred squeezed her hand assuredly before looking back to Yao. "He's in the basement, right? Is there some sort of stairs we go down?"

Yao nodded towards a giant metal hatch just feet away from them. "We used to keep it locked to preserve the refrigeration system, but it's been down for years. Yong Soo thought he could find some non-perishables, but…. Well, it doesn't really matter. Just don't die, alright? I've heard the security system doesn't take kindly to strangers."

But Alfred was already lifting the door to the hatch the second Yao directed him to it. Matthew solemnly nodded in his place. "When we find Yong Soo, we're going to leave and find Kiku, too. Just… don't let your hope die, alright?"

"What is that?" Bong Chung asked.

Matthew clamped his mouth shut, preventing him from gaping. "Hope… hope is not giving up. It means you feel like you're going to live and be happy one day."

If Bong Chung would have asked what happiness was, Matthew was sure he would have lost hope for these people himself. Thankfully, she merely nodded and settled herself back in her huddled position at Yao's side.

Before joining Alfred and Natalya in the dark, Matthew gave everyone one last look. Finally, they had decided to at least acknowledge their presence. Matthew gave them a hollow smile and shut the hatch after him.

The basement wasn't as dark as they had anticipated. A few lights still weakly illuminated the dusty room, decorated with rusty pipes running across the ceiling and damp walls that certainly kept things frosty.

"What are we going to do if Yong Soo is dead down here?" Natalya was first to ask. Alfred didn't answer, making Natalya frown. She didn't speak any more.

They decided to first explore the door that was open, figuring Yong Soo would have wanted an escape door for the apparently dangerous security system. The new room was filled with large crates broken open, but nothing except some cobwebs and dust could be found within. The next area they came to was a bit different. In a hunk of rusty metal lay a massive broken machine and several pods they were willing to assume helped the main machine. Scraps of dented metal littered the floor with several bullets. Shattered glass lay before the center of the wrecked security system, as well as more bullets and… a splash of blood?

The breath froze in Alfred's throat. "Yong Soo!" he shouted, quickly skirting around the wreckage to the next room.

This one smelled terribly of molded food. Even though there was no way any edible food could be salvaged from these crates, Alfred was glad he only smelled mold instead of….

He skidded to a stop when he heard a low grunt. Alfred ran behind one of the crates, Natalya and Matthew at his heels. Leaned against the rotted wood sat a boy of about seventeen, heavily blinking as if just woken. Alfred let out a laugh of relief, making the boy fully conscious. Yong Soo stared at them a moment. The second he moved his hand to reach for his gun, he let out a pained gasped, hands instead flying to his side.

"Where were you hit?" Matthew worriedly asked, kneeling down next to him.

"In the ribs," Yong Soo grunted, deciding to forego being cautious. "Holy Korea that hurts."

Matthew didn't even ask what a Korea was. He gingerly lifted away Yong Soo's jacket. The wound had long since stopped bleeding, thankfully, but he was sure some sort of infection had set in. But Matthew found he couldn't completely worry. Yong Soo really _was _alive! "Alfred, give him some of your bread," Matthew said.

Yong Soo's eyes went wide in shock as he pulled out an entire half of a loaf. "That's for me?"

"I doubt an Enertron can help you better," Alfred said. Yong Soo managed to eat almost faster than Jia Long.

He put on a sappy smile. "I don't know who you are, but I think I love you."

Alfred grinned back. "I'm Alfred F. Jones."

((((()))))

Yao's head snapped up when the hatch reopened. He dropped to his knees at the edge of it and reached down his hand, grabbing for the first hand that reached his. Matthew gave him a smile when he was back on the top floor. "We found him."

Alfred popped up next, Yong Soo on his back. His face was scrunched in pain, but Yao chose to ignore that in favor of letting out a cry and pulling him close to him. Matthew and Alfred helped Natalya up, then shut the hatch for good. Bong Chung crashed to her knees next to Yong Soo. She grabbed at his sleeve and burst into tears. Yong Soo kissed her forehead and slung one arm around Yao's neck, the other holding his hastily bandaged side, courtesy of Matthew.

Yong Soo finally reached into his coat pocket. "This is all I found," he explained, withdrawing a tiny seed. "All the food was spoiled."

"You can plant that!" Matthew burst. He reached for a broken bowl lying at his feet. "Someone can get some dirt from outside and you can plant it. It might take a while, but it'll grow into something you can eat. If you all can make another Enertron, it'll keep you alive until harvest time."

Bong Chung looked up at him. She tucked her hair behind her ear. "Hope," she said simply.

Yao broke down into grateful tears once more, this time throwing his arms around Matthew, Alfred, and Natalya.

"Thank you," Yao finally managed to say. "Thank you."

Alfred offered his own smile, but Matthew couldn't help but notice it was a little sad. All of a sudden, it occurred to him why Alfred had acted with such anger earlier.

Matthew remembered seeing a boy seated at his bedroom window, wearing Yao's previous expression, waiting to see his father's boat pull into shore. George Jones and the rest of his crew had set sail days before. It wasn't often to see them pull into port a few days late, but yesterday's storm had brought nothing but bad news to Truce. More days passed, Alfred didn't move from his spot, George's ship never pulled into shore. A week later, they received news from Medina that the wreckage of a ship had washed ashore. Any crewmen that had been on the ship were long gone.

"…This is different from a shipwreck, Alfred," Matthew said as soon as Yao had turned his focus back on Yong Soo, his injury, and the seed.

"I know. It's more like saving your mother's life."

Matthew's eyes went wide at that. More old memories flashed before his eyes- the conveyor belt Francis had made suddenly turned on. Jeanne's skirt got caught in it, making her fall. Matthew ran to the side of the machine, trying his hardest to remember the password that would turn it off before-

He let out a tight sigh. "I suppose so."

Natalya tugged on their sleeves, ripping them away from their thoughts. "We still have to find Kiku," she softly reminded them. "Yong Soo, is there any way we can find some guns?"

Another man stood up. He had been sitting before one of the weak barrels of fire, a suitcase at his side. "I used to be a merchant. I've still got plenty of weapons." He scurried past the others, who were also beginning to rise to their feet. The suitcase was filled with various kinds of guns and different sets of bullets. "You take all you need."

"Thank you," Natalya said, for Alfred and Matthew were still in a state of astonishment. She picked up a gun of her own, but it didn't fit right in her hand. With a sigh, she handed it to Alfred. "I'll stick with my daggers."

"I have a few hats to spare," a woman called out.

All of a sudden, the dome was filled with the clamor of strengthening voices, all filled with a renewed hope. Several people rushed over to them, hands full of dirt. Yao buried the seed within it and called for some water.

In all of the new hustle and bustle, the people almost didn't notice their last miracle.

The lights came on.


	5. Chapter 5

**Good Lord, this chapter is a monster, isn't it? It's this long on accident, by the way. I didn't know the End of Time would be five pages on Word. Geez. Anyway, please enjoy your chapter! I hope everyone had an awesome Thanksgiving!**

**Chapter 5-**

Unlike their miracle, the lights coming on made everyone resume their silence once more. Bong Chung and Yong Soo stared up into the flickering fluorescent lights as if they'd never seen such a sight before. Yao looked ready to cry again, but he held it in with a smile.

"Kiku did it," Yong Soo finally murmured.

Yao faced Alfred, standing in awe like everyone else. There was no doubt he and his friends were from the past as well. If they knew something more about the place Kiku- and supposedly Yao- were from, then just maybe….

He hurried to the back of the expansive room. Even though he hadn't operated a computer in years, it was still second nature for him. He had no idea how long the power would remain on, so he had to hurry. If he wasted this one last chance…. "Alfred, Matthew, Natalya! All three of you, get over here!"

The screen was dimmed and flickered along with the lights, but he was able to locate the correct file. "You are from the past," he confirmed, "so maybe you can tell me who this man is."

A video began to play, its fuzzed sound causing everyone to snap their heads around to look. Bong Chung let out a whimper, putting her hands over her ears. Yong Soo frowned and pulled her close, but didn't- or rather, couldn't- give her any consoling words.

The place in the video was, no doubt, Arris Dome. The vast area was bright and clear of rust and decay. Several people milled about dressed in a maroon uniform, delivering papers and drinks to those who sat before thin computers, typing at unreal speeds. A slightly younger Yao stood at the back of the room, before the same computer he now was at. His uniform was trimmed in gold with slightly baggier sleeves. Obviously, he had been someone important. In front of him stood a man garbed in a sapphire robe adorned with golden jewelry. His face was melded into a scowl, and the unheard words coming from his mouth clearly were not pleasant.

"He came from the same kind of dark portal as Kiku," Yao quietly explained. His face was illuminated from the light of the screen, seeming to accent every discreet wrinkle on his gaunt face. "His name was Morozko, he told me, and he was a king of a place called Zeal. This man claimed I was once on his court, but a 'mistake' sent me to the future and erased my memory. I thought he was crazy. When I laughed at him-"

Yao didn't have to continue. King Morozko flared up in anger, crumbling Yao's smile. He faced everyone else in the room. From his hands shot out fire. Alfred gaped at the impossible sight- then again, maybe magic was possible after all. If they had proved the Mystic War to be true and had discovered time travel, why couldn't magic be possible too? Fire from his hands was just distraction, however. He stuck a hand to Yao's computer and the power suddenly died. An alarm sounded, sending those unfortunate enough to still be in the room into a frenzy. Yao grabbed at Morozko to rip him away, but it proved futile. The screen fizzled into "ants", but the sound was still playing. The roars of planes flew over head, only outdone by the sound of an echoing crash. Finally, the sound also went away.

With a shaking hand, Yao clicked the video away.

"He somehow hacked into the country's defense systems. Nuclear bombs were flown to every corner of the earth, creating the worst disaster the world has ever seen. One man's actions killed over half of the Earth's population in less than an hour."

The lights blinked several times before going out again, this time probably for good. Recognition showed on no one's faces. The gloom that had filled the dome threatened to choke them all. Alfred's fists were clenched white on the table, and his lips trembled. "I don't know who he is," Alfred said lowly, "but I swear we're going to stop him."

Natalya sent him a look, but Alfred continued to stare at the black screen. She felt her features soften when she looked back to her own hands. Before she had rescued Alfred and Matthew, she remembered thinking that Marle, with her brave attitude, would make a good princess. Now she was beginning to reconsider. Bravery was indeed important, but what about the kind of selflessness and optimistic outlook Alfred had? Seeing him finally so serious after so long made her respect him a bit more. Matthew as well, when he nodded in agreement.

She only further convinced herself she wasn't cut out for rule when she didn't feel the same. Sure, that man- who somehow tugged at the edges of her memory- needed to be stopped so the future wouldn't turn out the way it had. But who was to say this country wouldn't have used those terrible weapons later, for another cause? Natalya wasn't sure they deserved to be saved, if that was the case. She suddenly felt overridden with guilt, standing beside Alfred and Matthew. They were heroes. She was a lie.

Clearing her throat, Natalya spoke, hoping that if she sounded brave it would make her feel like it. "He looked too powerful for us. We haven't even felled a single mystic yet, have we? I believe we should find Kiku first and figure out what's going on with the electricity. Then we can discuss this saving the world business."

Matthew offered a tiny grin at this agenda and nodded in approval. Alfred also gave his assent, still a bit stiff, and still looking absurd in Jia Long's jacket. He didn't look like himself without his leather jacket on. Natalya couldn't wait to leave so she could finally return it, no matter how warm it had actually kept her.

Yao weakly chuckled. "I never would have thought I'd be putting my faith in such a group like you.

Natalya turned to Yao and gave a short curtsey. "Thank you for showing us the truth of what happened. Also, thank you for the new supplies and…-"

"For hanging tight," Alfred finished. The lump in her throat almost seemed to completely vanish when his face brightened. "When we come back, we better get some grins."

((((()))))

The sewers were filled with mutants. They were everywhere, and looked like a mixture between monstrous mystics and normal animals, like fish and bugs. However, the fish had almost human like features and hands. They hadn't been much of a nuisance, since they didn't bother them unless Alfred strayed too near the edge of the walkway to check on the monsters. The bugs? Well… they were a bit different.

Not only was it wider than the three of them put together, but it was about the length of three Alfreds with a barb on the end of last appendage. Like the mutant fish, it also had hands with nasty claws on the ends of its three beefy fingers. Alfred decided to nickname this particular beast "Krawlie".

Krawlie didn't like having company in his sewers.

"I don't think the bullets are really hurting him, Mattie!" Alfred shouted. He had plastered himself up against the grimy wall, trying to put as much distance between him and Krawlie as possible. Matthew was half-hidden by an alcove, only showing himself when he turned to fire a few more useless rounds. Natalya had long since given up close-range combat the first time her arm was scratched. The sleeve of Alfred's jacket was already stained crimson.

"Just aim for the eyes!" Matthew replied, taking his own advice. "It's the only weak spot I can find!"

Krawlie let out a high-pitched hiss and took off in Alfred's general direction. Natalya, with her unharmed, nondominant hand, threw her knife as hard as she could. The blade landed right in the bug's eye, sending it crashing to the ground. Alfred kindly finished it off.

He was at Natalya's side in an instant, biting his lip. "Oh, geez, that looks terrible. Mattie, do you have any bandages?"

"I can do it," Natalya mumbled, kneeling down with her knife in hand. She cut off part of the bottom of her dress. Matthew, fumbling, tied it around her arm, wincing every time she did. "Thanks."

"Where did you learn to throw like that?" Alfred asked, gingerly retrieving her knife.

Natalya recoiled in disgust at it, holding it out at length. The second they found non-monster-infested water, it was getting a good cleaning. To Alfred's question she grimaced. "I had to find some way to preoccupy myself when Mother died and Father became a recluse. The kitchens are deserted at night, and the chefs never noticed when I took a few knives. I used to practice on the trees in the courtyard."

"Queen Aliza," Alfred muttered. "She died a long time ago, didn't she."

"When I was seven. Mother had always been sickly." At that last cold remark, Natalya took off in a tight, fast stride. "I believe I see a ladder."

Alfred and Matthew shared a concerned glance before hurrying after her, stubbornly climbing up despite her injured arm.

Back on the surface, the icy wind bombarded them again, sending simultaneous shivers wracking through them. Any warmth they might have felt down below while fighting was stolen in a matter of seconds as the snow continued to pour. It had already settled a few inches on this new frozen ground. The path to Keeper's Dome, where Deshad had told them Kiku had been headed towards, thankfully wasn't a long walk. The dome was considerably smaller than the others they had encountered on the mainland, and there wasn't as many ruins to be found either. Before Morozko set off the bombs, this must have been a wide field with plenty of vegetation. It was almost too easy for Natalya to think of the trees in Truce in the midst of this storm.

She clenched her jaw before she could begin to miss home- not that her cage was much of a home in the first place. After the queen passed away, any trace of "home" seemed to fade with her. No one wanted to listen to her stories, and they made her focus on studying rather than letting her play. If she wanted to be the princess in her dreams, Natalya was told, she had to learn how to be one from her books.

No one seemed to care about _anything._ The king spent his days dealing with politics, arguing with Median ministers over the idea of a ferry service connecting the two lands. There was still too much prejudice, the king couldn't allow any harm to befall his beloved subjects. Natalya wanted to role her eyes every time he referred to the people as "my beloved subjects". He hadn't seen them in years- how was he to know if they were still around? The entire Guardian populace could have disappeared, and he wouldn't have paid the least bit attention.

Natalya had to get away from this hypocrisy. She ran away countless times, but never made it farther than the forest around the castle. When the fair was announced, Natalya took advantage of the guards' idleness and snuck into town. That obviously hadn't gone according to plan, but she was finally free, right?

_You remember the stories I told you about that floating place, right, Mattie?_

Alfred had mentioned those stories before, when he introduced her to Arthur at the fair. _When you used to live in that floaty place?_ he had asked. Natalya hadn't really thought about it, passing it off as another effect of Alfred's insanity, but now….

The palace she had dreamed about. For some reason, whenever she would look out the window in her dreams, she would only see clouds against a perfect sky. It was a magnificent sight in the evening, when everything was flooded with bright crimson.

She couldn't have been dreaming of a palace in the sky, could she?

"Those stories you were talking about earlier, Alfred," Natalya started, teeth chattering and breath visible in tiny puffs. "What are they?"

"Stories? About the floating place?" he slowly asked. Alfred shrugged. "When I was a kid, I had an awesome imagination. I used to imagine myself on a floating piece of land in the sky. I don't remember much, but Arthur liked to add on to my stories. He talked about magic and a kingdom with two princesses and a little prince."

Matthew wryly smirked. "Alfred said he didn't want to be a prince or have magic. He just wanted a sword and a shield."

Alfred laughed and said something about how he was finally the knight of his dreams, but Natalya had long since stopped listening. Two princesses and a little prince? That sounded like her own stories! Natalya had an older sister and older brother. They were royalty, just like she really was, but they had each other while Natalya had only her mother and then nobody. A blurry figure popped up in her head, wearing almost the same sapphire garb as Morozko had worn. The blonde wasn't nearly as adorned with gold as "the king", however. Natalya couldn't see his face, but she knew he was smiling.

_Our delightful princesses and little prince. How are we doing today? Ready for your lessons?_

She felt lightheaded when the figure suddenly had Arthur's face.

"Does your arm hurt?" Alfred worriedly asked. Natalya shook her head, waving his concern away. She told him it was just a little headache- nothing for him to go into a chivalrous frenzy about.

They entered the dome before any further inquiry could be made. The inside was just as cold as the others had been, but it was completely lifeless. There was no power here either.

"…how…that name?"

"Over there!" Alfred excitedly pointed. The voice, though barely audible, had come from behind a massive iron door. Once they got closer, a very faint light could be seen illuminated behind the door. "Kiku?"

Natalya nodded. "Perhaps."

When Alfred pushed the door open, he found a sword pointed at his neck. Matthew drew his gun and Natalya pulled out her dagger, but a new voice shouted, "No no no! They're our saviors!"

The short, dark haired young man on the other end of the katana slowly looked over his shoulder. "…Saviors?" he repeated. "For… this Ocean Palace?"

In response, the second young man, slightly taller with redder hair, smacked his hand, forcing him to put the sword away. "He has the knife! The knife to end it all!" His face suddenly crumbled and he burst into tears. "But he was too late! The palace- the Ocean Palace- everything-"

"Shh, it's okay, Lovino," he awkwardly comforted. Lovino dropped his face onto the boy's shoulder, sobbing loudly. "S-sorry about this. He's…. I apologize. I'm Kiku."

"…Well, you're not what I was expecting," Alfred said honestly. At Kiku's wary look, he explained meeting Jia Long, Yao, and then saving Yong Soo. "After all they'd said about you, I thought you were this huge hero!"

Kiku stuttered another apology, lightly patting Lovino's back. "There isn't a lot of power, so I couldn't keep it on for very long. I apologize."

"You apologize a lot."

"I'm so- oh."

Alfred let out a hearty laugh. He poked Lovino, who rounded on him with a sour glare. Alfred, of course, didn't flinch back. "You're Lovino, right, dude? Mind telling us what this whole 'savior' business is about?"

He didn't say a word, but didn't lessen his glare. Finally, he jabbed a finger at Alfred's chest. "I don't care what you freaking threaten me with," he snarled. "I refuse to help that jerk!"

As if he were engaged in a conversation with someone else, Lovino's eyes widened in fear. "N-no, you can't do that! You don't know where he is! _I _don't know where he is!" Another pause. Lovino started to back up, shaking his head fearfully. "I-I can! I swear I can! I'm not one of the Earthbound- I swear I'm one of you!"

He clawed his arms, trying to scrape away an imaginary hand. "I'm not going to help him! I'm not going to help him run this kingdom into the ground! NO!"

"Lovino, stop!" Kiku burst. "No one's trying to hurt you!"

Alfred reached out and grabbed his shoulders. "LOVINO!"

Lovino froze, backed up against a faintly glowing computer. He owlishly blinked, meeting each of their faces one at a time. Finally he locked eyes with Alfred. He angrily threw his hands away from his shoulders. "Who the heck are you?" he demanded, sounding coherent at last. Lovino shoved Alfred back a few paces, lip curled in disgust. "I've already told you stupid dome losers that I'm _not _sharing my power. Now get out!"

Natalya cocked an eyebrow. "Excuse me?"

Lovino flinched at the tone. He nervously put on a stubborn frown to try and look tough. It didn't do anything to hide his shaking hands. "You're trespassing on my property," Lovino weakly said.

Kiku calmly stepped in front of Natalya, cutting off her hateful remark. He politely bowed. "We apologize for intruding into your home, Sir. I am an envoy from several of the domes, and these are my associates. My friend Yao, who is the appointed leader of the people outside, requested-"

"Shut up," Lovino snapped. He rolled his eyes and turned back to his computer. "It doesn't matter how you word it or how pathetic your poor situation is. I _need _the power here. If you guys have lived this long without it, you can keep doing what you've been doing, and leave me out of things. I don't need any of you guys anyway. I can survive on my own."

The epitome of patience, Kiku gave a slight smile and lightly cleared his throat. "I'm positive you can do just fine. You're certainly not lonely at all out here, are you?"

Lovino paused a moment. His shoulders drooped as he sighed. "Why won't you leave? Is electricity that important to you? Can't you go back to the old ways and do farming and stuff? I farm. I have a tomato patch in the back. Don't ask how it's still living."

Alfred craned his neck around the huge computer to look for this so-called tomato patch. All he found was a dry, untilled patch of dirt in corner of the dome. A few very dead vines lay withering on top of it, but there were no tomatoes to be found.

Maybe he wasn't as sane as they believed, even when not ranting and raving about heroes and working for "Him". Alfred threw his arms around him and Lovino spazzed. However, after fending off Lovino's shrieks and slaps, Alfred grabbed his wrists. "You're a stick!" he cried. "You're dying just like the rest of them! Without any food or an Enertron, you're starving and going crazy. You need the others just like they need you!"

"I don't need anyone!" he burst, tears pricking at the corners of his eyes again. Lovino shook his head, trying to fend off a new headache. He rubbed at his temples irritably. "Even if I went back with you, no one could help me! No one has ever helped me! They've all used me and left me behind- even my brother!"

Lovino's face quickly faded from anger into sadness. "Everyone… g-gone. All of them. Because of me. They're gone because of me. The Ocean Palace- I couldn't stop them. I couldn't save them! Katyusha, Feliciano, I'm sorry! I couldn't help you, I couldn't stop you!"

Alfred looked to the floor. Lovino continued to ramble through his tears, shaking his head. Kiku quickly turned to the door and bowed his head. "…Perhaps we should make our leave."

Matthew nodded and helped him pull the door open. Natalya walked through without saying a word. She pulled out one of her daggers and left it on the floor- "I'll at least give him a fighting chance if the mutants ever make it here".

"I'll be out in a minute," Alfred called over his shoulder. Kiku dipped his head and followed Natalya and Matthew outside.

Lovino didn't seem to notice his unwanted company had finally left the building. He had slid to the floor, head in his trembling hands. Alfred knelt down next to him and patted his shoulder. "I don't know what happened to you, but I swear I'll fix it. I'll be your savior, okay? Just like you said. I promise I'll make things right."

"H-he promised he'd take care of me," Lovino quietly gasped. Alfred looked to his face, but his eyes were still unfocused. "He promised he'd protect me. But he let them take me. He never cared about me. No one did. No one does. I'm always alone. Always left behind."

"Not always. When we come back here, we'll take you with us. You can stay with Artie or Francis or someone. If you like tomatoes, you'd probably be friends with a guy I know named Antonio."

He was quiet for a moment, his shuddering gasps fading into silent crying. Lovino's face was red enough to be a tomato. Any other time, Alfred supposed he'd laugh. Now….

Lovino, in the surest voice Alfred had ever heard, muttered, "Antonio is a liar."

No matter what else Alfred said, Lovino wouldn't respond. He wouldn't move and didn't try to wipe his tears. Alfred solemnly stood and reached into his coat to pull out the last piece of bread he had. His stomach growled as he placed it in front of Lovino.

"Make sure you survive, okay?"

Alfred closed the door behind him without looking back. He couldn't shake the feeling that Lovino was already just a dead man walking.

((((()))))

"So you are also from the past," Kiku slowly confirmed. On their way back to Arris Dome, they had told him everything- from their mishap at the fair, to saving the Queen in the Middle Ages, and finally coming to the future and learning Morozko had destroyed everything. Matthew nodded, pulling out his Gate Key. Kiku gingerly took it, critically examining it. "Interesting. This is quite an invention, Mr. Williams."

"J-just Matthew," he embarrassedly twittered. Kiku quickly apologized.

Quite a distance behind the two, Natalya rolled her eyes. "It seems Matthew has made a new friend," she wryly noted. Alfred chuckled beside her. His hands were jammed into his pockets and he shook something terrible, reminding her of a trembling Lovino. Her smirk started to wane, but she caught herself with another offhanded comment about Kiku's absurd hair. And really, it was quite stupid. Bowl-cuts? Ugh. The only people who could get away with that kind of hairstyle were medieval knights, for whom the hair was required. Except, apparently, for Gilbert.

Natalya hadn't gotten to know much about him before they left for the present, but Alfred still spoke of him fondly, as if they had been made instant best friends in the few hours they were together. It was like Matthew and Kiku, she supposed. Maybe the next era they ended up in would give her a new friend.

She inwardly made a face at that. Natalya couldn't see herself as a buddy to anyone, let alone a goofy knight or a nerd. It wasn't like she needed friends anyway. In that way, she supposed she could see what Lovino was talking about. Anyone she had ever been close to had either left her or betrayed her. There really wasn't a use in getting close to someone if the same would repeat.

"Come on, guys, get a move on! I'm about to lose my fingers!" Alfred shouted. Matthew and Kiku flinched to attention, stuttering out their respective apologies. Alfred erupted into a cackle, elbowing Natalya. She smiled to indulge him, but she certainly didn't find it funny. He stole her joke. He was funnier, but unoriginal.

"After we check in with Yao, we're gonna go, okay?" Matthew asked. "Kiku said he'd like to come with us- he thinks he might be able to remember something about the time he's from."

"Y-yes," he nodded again. Kiku seemed to nod and bow as much as he apologized. Natalya had a feeling he would really grate her nerves as time wore on. "If this Morozko person said Yao was from his time, it would mean he was also from my time. I remember being close to Yao, so perhaps I can remember something about Morozko as well. I fully agree with your plan to change the future, though I believe we should be cautious, as Natalya has advised."

Alfred shrugged. "Great. Awesome. Back to Arris Dome now? I feel as though I'm in need of food and a nap, so I really want to try out this Enertron thing."

"It doesn't help the feeling of hunger," Kiku reminded him.

"But it'll make me feel more awake, so I can better imagine the sweet taste of hamburgers."

Matthew told him not to ask what a hamburger was. If they got started on food, Alfred could suddenly turn cannibal. He hadn't been fed regularly in quite a while, so there was no telling when he would snap.

"I wouldn't eat you guys," Alfred muttered. "You're too small."

That certainly made Natalya feel better.

((((()))))

The folks of Arris Dome, had they more food and decorations, might as well have thrown them a party when they arrived. Everyone was all over Kiku, turning his face bright red in embarrassment. He was the new hero to them, even if he hadn't been able to keep the power on for more than a few minutes. Yao smushed him into another hug, and Kiku almost returned it, but refrained from doing so because of everyone else around. Yong Soo didn't restrict his show of affection to a simple hug. His… glomp, one could say, nearly left Kiku in a catatonic state.

"I'm sorry to have been away so long," Kiku apologized once his face had returned to its usual pale color. He addressed the ragged group. "My journey, I fear, has been in vain. I have failed you all. However, seeing all hope has not been lost in the seed, I may leave without fearing the worst. To redeem myself, I have decided to join the search for a way to change the future."

Yong Soo blinked slowly. "You're… leaving?"

Kiku ducked his head away shamefully. "I'm sorry, Yong Soo. But I must do this. I will return as often as I can-"

"You can't!" the boy burst. He stumbled as he jumped up, but Bong Chung steadied him. "Kiku, what are we going to do without you?"

"You will grow the seed. You will survive," Kiku sadly smiled. "Besides, the ones you should be thanking are Alfred, Matthew, and Natalya. They're the ones that saved you and gave you hope. I left you."

Alfred bit his lip as Lovino popped up in his head again. He wouldn't let Yong Soo end up like him. "Next time we visit, we'll bring tons of food!" Alfred piped up. He smiled widely, momentarily forgetting about his freezing fingers. "It'll be a feast. An awesome one! I'll find more seeds and tools and stuff, too! We're not leaving forever!"

Matthew pulled out the Gate Key, wielding it proudly. "With this thing, we can come and go as often as we can. So don't worry, okay? We'll have the future fixed in no time."

"Perhaps then we can be worthy of being heroes," Natalya added, trying to add a humbling note to their little speeches.

"Just one thing before you go," Yao said. He tugged out a pendant from under his shirt. Natalya started to see it was almost identical to hers. He put it in Kiku's hands and grinned. "It would be selfish to keep the good luck charm after all that's already happened. I want you to take it now. The last president of the country before me said it was tradition to pass it down the line of ascendancy. I'm hardly a leader now, but I think it still remains true as a symbol of a new beginning. May it now aid you."

"Thank you," Kiku said, hastily tying in around his neck. "I will treasure it."

At Kiku's nod, Matthew typed in _1000 A.D. _and turned on the Gate Key's power. The tip of the wand sparked and a portal appeared at his feet. Yao and all the others gave a saluting bow as they hopped in at once.

The portal closed behind them, taking every last bit of their presence from the room. Yao quietly regarded the empty space, running his hand through his hair. "Well… there is your proof, everyone. Time travel is possible. Thus, rewriting history should also be possible."

_With this fateful ascension of the Ocean Palace, all of history will be rewritten in Zeal's glory! For now and forever, we will reign in an ageless eternity!_

Yong Soo and Bong Chung were barely able to catch him as Yao collapsed. "President!" Bong Chung burst.

He blearily shook his head. "He… he was right. Morozko… king…." Before falling into unconsciousness, Yao muttered, "It wasn't my fault."

((((()))))

Alfred awoke to a black, swirling, misty sky. When he sat up, he still saw a murky fog lingering over the cobblestone ground. It was cold in this new area, but nothing compared to the future's harsh temperature. It was an almost lonely kind of cold in this place.

He shook Matthew's shoulder until he blinked his eyes open. "I don't think we're in Truce," Alfred whispered. It seemed wrong to speak any louder. The silence felt to be absolute, and Alfred couldn't mess it up. Matthew checked the Gate Key- and his eyes went wide. Alfred worriedly looked over his shoulder and felt like cursing. The date didn't appear on the screen, but everything else seemed to be functioning as normal. Alfred swallowed hard and left Matthew to panic.

Once Natalya and Kiku were awake, they were able to properly panic together. "How did it mess up?" Natalya anxiously demanded. "You didn't land on it again, did you?"

"It's not broken," Matthew countered, "it just isn't reading the time! Either we're so far back in the past that time hasn't been recorded or we're at some point in the future where there's _nothing _left."

"You're not in the past or the future."

They flinched at the new voice, whipping their heads around. A lamppost was suddenly in the midst of the fog, illuminating the area enough for them to see an old man leaning against it. A tattered bowler hat nearly covered his eyes and a mustache hid the rest of his face. The old man's brown suit was just as faded as everything else, it seemed. He smiled behind his mustache, slightly cocking his head. "You're at the End of Time. All of time has stopped flowing here. As a result, any point in time can be accessed here. With the help of that thing or magic, of course."

"Who are you?" Alfred asked.

The Old Man waved them closer. "I suppose I'm the guardian or something. A sort of guide, if you will. As I said before, this is the End of Time. I don't usually get many visitors, so you four must have done something to trigger your arrival. It's probably the amount of you. Time travel can get a little screwy when too many try to cross at once."

"We won't be able to get home?" Matthew worriedly asked.

He shook his head. "Of course you'll be able. This place- wherever it is- isn't a prison. You should be able to travel as you please from this point. Only on occasion will you pop up here. It's a pretty complicated process. Honestly, I'm almost as clueless as you all are."

"That's reassuring," Natalya blandly said.

The Old man laughed, but soon winced when his back popped. "You're a cheerful one, Princess. Ah, don't be too surprised, my dear. I can tell royalty when I see it. I was once close to a prince."

Natalya was taken aback for a moment. She cautiously asked, "It wasn't the prince of a floating kingdom was it?"

"Do you remember, then?"

"Wait a minute!" Alfred interjected. "You mean it's _real?_"

"Of course," the Old Man said. He absently waved his cane, pointing into the fog. "It was a very real place ages ago. Magic was in abundance, joy ran rampart through the land…. To see the people bring about such an age is truly tragic. One man's greed tore apart families, friends, and an age of peace."

No doubt that man was Morozko. Alfred hated to think of just what he had done to not only doom the future but also his own time. What kind of man could do that sort of thing, magic or no?

Magus's legacy suddenly popped up in his head. He had tore apart his time too, engulfing the land in a terrible war. Families and friends were definitely shattered by the war. Peace was a myth in the Middle Ages. Magus had been heralded as the King of the Mystics, too. All of it suddenly seemed to fit. Magus had three generals, but one of them was rumored to be human. That couldn't have been Yao, could it? The weird blue robe Morozko wore in the video wasn't the usual garb of someone from the Middle Ages, but Magus wasn't usual at all.

There was no way…-

"Hey, uh, you don't happen to know anything about a dude named Magus, do you?" Alfred asked.

The Old Man cocked his head a moment in thought. He shrugged after a while of thought. "I don't know much, sorry. He wreaked havoc in 600 A.D., didn't he? But I suppose you already knew that."

Matthew suddenly seemed to make the same connection as him. He groaned in recognition of the similarities. Even the statue of Magus they had seen in Manolia Cathedral had looked similar to Morozko in the video! If Morozko ruined things in the Middle Ages, then they didn't have far to search.

He supposed this revelation meant there really was no legendary hero of lore to vanquish Magus, but Matthew hadn't really believed that in the first place. A monster was a monster, and that was all there was to it.

Kiku and Natalya were completely lost, and Matthew's stuttered, excited explanation didn't help matters. Even the Old Man looked terribly confused. Not that he wasn't very confusing himself. While Matthew ranted away about his new ideas, Alfred decided to try and learn more about the strange Old Man.

The Old Man seemed surprised when Alfred asked what his name was, like he hadn't had to say his name in quite a while. It made Alfred wonder just how long he had been at this place. "My name… I don't remember."

"You… don't remember your name?" Alfred repeated.

He humbly shrugged and gestured towards Kiku, now enthusiastic that he had been able to make the connection. "I suppose I'm a lot like Kiku. I forgot a lot when I went through time. Don't make such a big fuss!" he said before Alfred could turn around and inform them the Old Man was "one of them" too. Once he had Alfred's attention again, the Old man sighed. "There were so many of us. The entire kingdom had showed up to see… whatever it was we were there for. Can't remember that, either. But I know Kiku was there. I can still remember several of my old friends…."

The Old Man had such a far-away look in his eyes. He could vividly remember each of their faces- Kiku didn't look a bit different, aside from the new clothing he had gotten from the future. They had all shared an anxious demeanor about this event. If only the Old Man could remember!

It took Matthew's quiet farewell to snap the Old Man from his reverie. "Thank you for your help," the blonde said. Kiku, again, decided to thank him excessively with a low bow. "Um, we'll come back and visit sometime. I think I know how to put this age… or rather, _void_, into the Gate Key's system."

"I'd appreciate it," the Old Man grinned. Before Matthew could enter in _1000 A.D._ again, the Old Man suddenly straightened. "Wait a minute! I almost forgot! If you want to stop Morozko or Magus or whoever, you're going to need more than those dinky little weapons. Morozko was the king of a magic land, so he has magic too. Believe me, you're going to need magic of your own to fight him."

"Magic is real _too?_" Alfred hopelessly burst. He had gone along with ideas of medieval wars, time travel, and post-apocalyptic futures, but magic was something else entirely. He hadn't even believed that Morozko had used magic to screw things up in the future's past. Ugh, now he had a headache, just thinking about this mess. Alfred needed food and _soon_. And a nap. And what about Bunny? His poor rabbit must be going mad without him! WHAT ABOUT HIS MOTHER, TOO? She could have already burned down the town in search for him! How were they supposed to save the future if he couldn't even stop his mother from going on a rampage?

"Great," Matthew sighed. "Alfred's finally lost it."

Curiously watching him start to hyperventilate, the Old Man slightly chuckled. "He's a funny kid. Didn't he know one can only time travel with the help of magic? Not that your Gate Key is doing most of the work, of course. I'd guess it's Natalya's pendant that set everything into motion. Am I right?"

Her hand instantly went up to the cool stone. "How do you know that?"

"Look at it. You can see it faintly glowing with magic."

Matthew and Kiku looked over at it, and Natalya had to succumb to the curiosity too. Sure enough, if they looked closely, the pendant almost seemed to be radiating a pale light. Natalya fingered the stone, flickering her eyes back to the Old Man. "What does this mean?"

He shrugged again. Seeing Alfred was still in a state of shock, the Old Man lightly whacked him with his cane. Alfred snapped out of it to cradle his arm. "Anyway, I'm not sure what it means," the Old Man continued, leaning back on his cane. "There's been tons of things imbued with magic over the course of history for various reasons. One of the most famous was a sword called the Masamune. It's so powerful it can do anything! Your necklace has a lot of magic in it too, if it can glow like that. But I think it's more of a thing of protection."

"Protection? From what?" she asked. Natalya clenched her jaw. "If you know anything about my necklace or me, I demand to know."

"I know more about you than you'd care for your friends to find out about."

Natalya went pale. He couldn't possibly know something like _that._ But he talked as if he was from an age of magic. If Magus wasn't Morozko, could he be from…. No. That was impossible. The floating place from her and Alfred's imaginations wasn't real. They just had similar ideas, that was all! It was a coincidence that Arthur had been able to come up with an idea of two princesses and a prince. For all Natalya knew, he could have been talking about some of his old students. He had said he used to be a teacher, right? That's certainly what it was.

The Old Man cleared his throat. "But anyway, you should probably be getting on your way unless you want to stay here like me. Long story short, each of you have magic, meaning your ancestors must have been the same place as me. There are four elements, but I really don't want to explain it all. Trust me, this can get very complicated."

He pointed a bony finger at Kiku. "You have fire magic, Kiku. Matthew and Natalya both have water, and it looks like Alfred has light. Please don't ask how I found that out."

"L-long story?" Alfred guessed.

"Exactly. So, to teach you all how to use it. Basically, just feel like it, and it happens!" the Old Man joyfully said, weakly waving his arms out. His cane narrowly missed Matthew's face. He got back into his hobbled position with a meek chuckle. "Sorry! But magic is like breathing. You just _do _it. It's a subconscious thing, but you can make it happen when you want- just like deciding to hold your breath. I guess you guys should just try it out?"

If Matthew wasn't the nice young man he was, he probably would have throttled the old man for giving such a terrible lesson. How was something like that supposed to teach them how to use magic? But Matthew was nice. In fact, he could probably give excessively-polite Kiku a run for his money.

The Old Man gestured with his cane, this time avoiding any of their faces. A large white ring of light appeared on the cobblestone ground. From it sprang up a dark time portal. "See? Magic can bend time. This will take you back to 1000 A.D. I expect Matthew will want to spend most of his time tinkering with the Gate Key now that he has magic."

Actually, he _didn't _have magic, but no one had the heart to tell the Old Man otherwise. If he wanted to pretend they had magic, they'd let him. Alfred waved goodbye and hopped through the portal first. The others gave their own nervous farewells and quickly followed.

((((()))))

"ANTONIO ANTONIO ANTONIOOOOOO!"

The Spaniard woke with a start, sitting upright in his chair. He rubbed the sore crick in his neck from falling asleep at such a weird angle. Another wave of urgent knocking threatened to bring down his door. "S, I'm coming!"

He opened the door to see a tiny green imp, anxiously rocking on his heels. He looked like the baker's son. "What's wrong?" Antonio asked, kneeling down to his level.

The imp pointed back to town, about half a mile away from Antonio's house on the beach. "Humans! THEY CAME FROM THE CUPBOARD!"

Antonio blinked. "The cupboard…?"

"Yes! Humans! Four of them! Antonio, you've gotta do something about this!"

He sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. It was times like these that he really hated being the Medinan ambassador. However, if the Mystics here trusted him enough to let him live here, he supposed he was obligated to help out in town when asked. Antonio nodded. "Okay, let's go!"

But seriously, humans arriving in a Mystic town via _cupboard_


	6. Chapter 6

**Michigan- Um, I'm sorry you don't agree with my choices? But it's cool. Your characters would make for a pretty interesting story. I promise, there is a reason Natalya is Marle (who used bows and crossbows, not staffs, by the way). She's not Schala, but she does play another very important role. Gilbert is Frog because his relationship with Fritz is just too similar to that of Glenn and Cyrus's. Plus, it really helps that someone Prussia hates is Magus. Not that it's really spoiler, since it's so obvious, but whatever. Kiku is Robo mostly because I couldn't find someone more suited to be Robo. XD Everyone else had already been assigned to a different character, and since Yao was Doan, I thought it'd be appropriate. Ayla, though not introduced yet, is also a certain character for a good reason. Also, it's just too ironically funny that the person's lover would be Kino. Ah, I can't wait for that part…. XD But anyway, thank you for reviewing! I hope the story does turn out better for you as it goes on.**

**Why, of course Mystics speak Spanish! It's only a well-known fact!**

**And WATCH/READ HOMESTUCK! **_**THE INSANE FEELS….**_

**Chapter 6-**

"_I'll be back in no time, okay? I know you'll be wonderful for __Maman__, won't you?"_

_Matthew bashfully nodded, hugging Francis before he turned to leave. He watched Francis kiss his new __maman_ _and kiss him on the forehead. "I'll be back at sundown."_

"_Bye, Francis," Jeanne warmly said, hands on his shoulders. She softly closed the door behind him and took Matthew's hand. "What shall we do, Matthew? Just think of all the fun we'll have with Papa away."_

_Matthew grinned. He loved his __maman_ _so much. She really was fun! Jeanne would play with Matthew and Alfred, stick fighting with them and racing with them to the pier to meet Alfred's dad when he got off his boat. Jeanne always let them win, though, and broke up their fight when they started to argue about who had actually reached George Jones' legs first. Matthew loved Alfred's dad, too. Unlike Francis, he didn't mind getting dirty. Everyone loved him because he worked so hard. George was a hero._

_But today, it was just Matthew and Jeanne. After a moment of deciding what to play first, they settled on Hide-and-Go-Seek. Since Matthew had issues with counting past twenty, Jeanne stood with her back to him, hands over her eyes, counting in a soft voice._

_He panicked a moment- there were tons of places to hide, but they were all near Papa's weird inventions. They were strictly off-limits. Francis had told him time and time again that they could end up hurting him if he messed with them. But he had to go somewhere. Jeanne was almost finished counting!_

_This invention hadn't even been finished, so Matthew figured it would be okay to stand behind. It had a conveyor belt and a bigger part that had several different controls on it. None of them worked, of course._

_He settled in behind the machine, watching for Jeanne's long skirt to pass by him. She stayed out by the front of it, though, probably looking for him in the kitchen. Who did she think he was, Alfred? Matthew donned a silent smile and looked up at the different controls. There were so many! How could Francis figure any of this out? It looked like something from another world! Matthew knew he wasn't supposed to, but curiosity got the best of him. The big switch in the middle of everything was just asking to be flipped._

_Suddenly, the machine came to life. Matthew flinched back in shock. Something _thumped _down on the ground, and Jeanne screamed. He sat frozen in terror. Had… had he done something? To Jeanne? He did! Something terrible, because he didn't listen to Francis and touched it-_

"_Matthew!" Jeanne screamed again. "Matthew! Turn it off! Turn it OFF!"_

"_I don't know how!" he wailed, still panicking. It didn't occur to him that the switch was just a little above him. Matthew pushed every button he could but nothing was working. Why did he have to give in to curiosity?_

_Crying out in frustration, he rushed out of his hiding spot to see Jeanne on the conveyor belt, her skirt caught in it. "Matthew! Honey, there's a switch- there has to be a switch, right? Find it for __Maman__, okay? Hurry!"_

"_I-I don't know where it is!" Matthew's vision started blur. He sniffled and grabbed Jeanne's hand, trying to pull her out of this mess. Matthew wasn't nearly strong enough, but he pulled with all of his might. Still, his efforts proved to be in vain when Jeanne let out a scream._

Matthew's eyes snapped open as he sucked in a horrified breath. He rubbed his face and let out a groan. If he was going to keep having that same memory pop up into his head every time he time traveled….

It suddenly occurred to him that he was laying in a bed in an unfamiliar room. Although he was okay with the fact because he was finally warm, it was a bit unsettling to notice he was too tall for the bed. Was this a child's bed or something? He shook his head as he stood up to get a better look of the new area. The plain and very familiar architecture of the room assured him they had successfully arrived in the present.

That was a major relief. There was another bed in the room, but it was empty with the covers messily pulled up. Obviously Alfred had been here, too. Wherever they were, the people must have known them to let them invade their home like this. Matthew had a feeling he'd have a lot of apologizing to do on Alfred's behalf.

He rubbed his face one more time to ensure the horror was officially gone and opened the door.

Matthew wasn't sure who screamed, but he had a sinking feeling it had been him. Kiku was before him in an instant, since Alfred and Natalya were too busy stuffing their faces at a tiny dining table amongst Antonio and some imps. IMPS! MONSTROUS, CONNIVING IMPS!

"C-calm down, Matthew," Kiku twittered. "These nice Mystics invited us to dinner."

"Dinner?" he choked. "We're having a civil dinner with _Mystics?_"

It suddenly occurred to him before Antonio could happily exclaim, "Welcome to Medina, Seor Bonnefoy!"

"How nice," he absently replied, head spinning. Medina. The huge island beside Truce that was home to basically every Mystic in this time period. The same place that had a lovely reputation of hating humans! Like them!

One of the imps, a considerably smaller-than-the-others blue one, nervously held up a tiny bowl teeming with fruit. "_Hola, Seor Bonnefoy_. _Quieres algunas frutas? Son muy deliciosos_."

"Speak their language, Tavros! It's impolite when you know the mainland language," the biggest, and probably eldest, imp chided. The younger bashfully apologized and offered Matthew again some fruit, this time speaking in "the mainland language". Matthew had had no idea there was an entirely different language spoken in Medina. He had always thought Antonio made up random words for the heck of it.

Matthew, for once, decided not to ask any of the questions pressing on his mind in favor of accepting dinner. It felt like an eternity since he last had a decent meal. It had at least been a day or two. That made him wonder, too. Just how long had they been gone? It was so hard to judge the time they'd spent with this confusing time traveling going on.

Once Alfred had finally stopped eating, he decided to get down to business. Leaving out a few of the details involving the destruction of the future by Morozko (or Magus?) and their crazy encounter with Lovino, Alfred explained everything to Antonio. Every passing second made Antonio's expression slip into a grimace.

"I told Francis it was a stupid idea to send you back in time," he muttered once Alfred had said his peace.

"Then you're from my era as well?" Kiku asked, a hopefulness not completely masked in his voice. At Antonio's sigh and nod, a small grin popped up on his face. It soon faded, however. "Then we were scattered all across the time stream, weren't we. Are there any others…?"

"Unfortunately. There are a few. By the way, why don't you guys have amnesia?"

That was a very good question, actually. Matthew gave it some serious thought. There had to be something protecting them-

The pendant. The Old Man at the End of Time had told them as much, right? Matthew wanted to palm himself for not realizing it earlier. Natalya's magic necklace had kept their memories intact. But if it had been able to preserve theirs, maybe there was a chance it could also restore Kiku's memory….

Kiku flinched a bit in surprise when Matthew lightly patted his shoulder. "This is a potentially crazy question, but when we jumped through time, did you have any flashbacks? Any new memories?"

He mulled it over thoughtfully a moment. At last, he shook his head. "I'm afraid I don't remember anything more. I was in a dark room… Yao was there as well. We were standing together when the time portal popped up. I think… there were several of them. Someone had done something wrong."

"I remember the dark room too," Antonio mumbled. "I think it might have been…. Augh, I can't remember her name! The eldest princess. The king wanted to make her use her magic for… for something. But, like you said, her spell must have backfired and threw us into the time stream. That's all I remember. You look a lot like our princess, Natalya, and that's why Francis sent you to the past, thinking it would jog your memory. But I'm not so sure anymore. You should have remembered something by now."

Natalya ducked her head away from Alfred's incredulous look and muttered, "I can never get away from being princess of anything, can I? But it makes no difference who was or is the princess. She messed up and ruined the future. The only thing we can do is try and fix things. We know where the king is, and we can stop him from making the princess cast you across time."

"Th-the king?" Antonio stuttered. "Oh no no no no, _no pueden luchar el rey! Es más poderoso que ustedes!_"

In a nervous panic, he jumped out of his seat and began pacing across the small dining room. The imps warily trailed him with their eyes, fright starting to show on their faces. No one, even Alfred and Matthew, had seen him this flustered before. Antonio finally stopped, looking to them with a pleading look. "There is no way you can fight the king. He is invincible. There are too many people on his side. You are no match for any of them."

"What kind of idiots would side with a wack-job like him?" Alfred burst.

"Hey! Those 'idiots' were our ancestors!" Tavros indignantly piped up. He bared his fangs and growled, "My great-great-great-great-great-great-great grandpa Rufio fought for the Fiendlord! He was a hero!"

Alfred reached across the tiny table and flicked him in the forehead. "Hero? Anyone willing to help a mass-murderer fight a war is _not _a hero, trust me. That Rufio dude could have killed one of _my _ancestors."

"Mass-murderer? MASS-MURDERER? Magus was our savior! Before he came to liberate us from you nasty humans, we were hunted like monsters! The only reason we didn't annihilate you before Magus was because we were foolishly nice, and let you overpower us! And now again, my _papá_ and I let you rest at our house because you are friends with _Señor _Carriedo, and you disrespect us!"

Natalya slapped a hand over Alfred's mouth before he could make things even worse. She glared him back into his seat while Matthew gave Tavros a tight apology. Alfred spoke for himself, he explained. As for him, Kiku, and Natalya, they were delighted to make their acquaintance, and were extremely grateful to have been allowed to eat dinner with such lovely imps as themselves. In fact, they acted more civil than most humans!

Regardless, though the no fangs remained bared, Kiku supposed it was about time they moved on anyway. It was imperative they made it to the past, at the very least to find out the truth.

"Thanks for having us over," Matthew muttered, scurrying out of the door.

Alfred tarried in the doorway a moment, lips dipping into a slight frown. He turned to Antonio, still morose from thoughts of the king and his past life. Seeing him so down almost made Alfred keep his mouth shut, but he figured this was awfully important. "Um… did you know a guy named Lovino?"

He stumbled back, as if Alfred had just punched him in the gut. Antonio reached out and grabbed his shoulders. "_Dios mio,_ he's alive? Is he okay?"

"Uh…," he gaped. Alfred had to look away from his hopeful eyes so he could properly lie. After everything this afternoon, Antonio needed some good news. "Yeah," he nodded to the floor. "He's okay. Not exactly beaming sunshine, but he's alright."

"That's great! Lovi was never a very cheerful person."

"He practically tried to bite our heads off when we met him," Alfred weakly joked. Antonio took with a laugh anyway, smushing him into a suffocating hug. After releasing him with another gushed thanks, Alfred turned to rush back to the others.

Now he absolutely had to go back for Lovino, if only for Antonio's sake. No matter what, he had to stop Morozko and this princess.

((((()))))

"Are you sure you don't want to visit Virginia, Alfred?" Matthew sheepishly- no, guiltily- asked as he meandered through the dim Heckran Cave. If Matthew remembered correctly, there was a secret tunnel in the cave that led to the Mainland. Before the ferry used to stop in Medina for Antonio from time to time, the only way to and from Medina was Heckran Cave. Matthew only hoped the mystic the cave was named for wasn't around today. "She has to be worried sick-"

Alfred bit his lip, mulling over a worry of his own. He hadn't been very talkative since leaving Antonio and the imps. "…Maybe it's best she thinks we're still gone for now. My mother won't let us leave her sight if she finds out about us. Jeanne will take care of her."

…_What happened to my family?_

Kiku walked in behind the group like a good trooper, keeping silent unless prompted to speak. He didn't mean to be antisocial- there was just too much on his mind at the moment. Was amnesia a common thing when time-traveling, or was it another side effect of the princess's spell? What were she and the king trying to do in the first place? Finally, how did Natalya come to wear a magic pendant when she hailed from an era without magic? He didn't doubt what the old man had told them about this magic business. How could he, remembering proof of it himself? If Kiku could only remember how, he could probably utilize it as well.

But as Alfred and Matthew continued quietly talking about their respective mothers, Kiku's mind began to stray. What little he remembered didn't feature any recognizable family members. Did that mean he didn't have a family or were they simply not memorable enough? He remembered Yao and Yong Soo, as well as a few others he couldn't name, but they weren't "family".

Instead, their's was a complicated relationship that still managed to be foggy. Kiku couldn't even begin to describe it. Whenever he thought about it, a new name and face came to his mind. He remembered, but the second he began to dwell on it, it would disappear. This person was certainly one of his best friends. Kiku knew they had spent many moments together in the castle with their other friend and sometimes Yong Soo and the others. Yao hadn't participated in their escapades, as he had an important job to attend to.

"What are you grinning about?"

Kiku flinched when Natalya addressed him, totally taking him by surprise. "N-nothing," he quickly muttered, forcing his face to revert back to its blank slate.

She rolled her eyes. "Like it or not, you're stuck with us now until you get back home. If you have something to say, you ought to say it. It's difficult to keep secrets with these two."

"What kind of secrets are you hiding, then?" Kiku asked, trying not to wince at how rude he sounded. Natalya's attitude was almost infectious.

Natalya let out a deep breath, pausing a moment to shout to Alfred that he was about to walk into bat. After his girly scream and a few wild gun shots gave her reply, she addressed Kiku again. "You already know I'm the princess of this land," she said lowly. "But that's not necessarily true. The king and queen weren't my real parents. It's a common thing, I was told. If something happens to the heir, most times, the king and queen will find a replacement. I suppose I looked enough like the princess to become her."

"Then Natalya isn't your real name?" he asked in surprise.

"Of course it is. The old princess's name was Nadia. Since my name sounded similar to hers, I suppose they 'legally' changed it to match mine. I suppose I forgot about that as I grew, but I recently found out about it again. That and the fair prompted me to run away, where I then unfortunately met Alfred. He dragged me to Matthew's show where his father started this mess. Perhaps that's why he's not going to visit his family?"

Kiku didn't blame her. He had seen her fury already when they were attacked at the mouth of the cave by several large bats. There was no telling what she would do to Matthew's father for sending her on a journey through time. "I'm sorry to hear that," Kiku told her. "One's identity is often all one has, and that was stolen from you."

"…Don't apologize for things out of your control. Now, what secrets are you hiding?"

"I-"

Alfred's gun fired again, cuing them to turn towards him. Natalya merely cocked an eyebrow while Kiku broke down into stutters.

The Heckran, a massive blue mystic that did _not _look happy to see them, stood before the tunnel Matthew talked about. As with Krawlie, bullets had little effect on the hulking beast, slowly stepping with claws out and mouth open to swallow them whole, if given the chance.

"We can't run around it, can we?" Kiku asked, drawing his sword. He doubted it would have any effect as well, but he couldn't leave himself totally defenseless. The Heckran's claws looked as if they could turn him into ribbon. "We cannot fight him."

Matthew bit his lip. They all began to worry. "Mattie, we don't have time for you to zone out!" Alfred burst, pushing him out of the way of a swipe. He yelled out when he took the hit instead. With a thud, Alfred landed on the hard ground, teeth clenched and face suddenly white.

Kiku lunged forward to slash at the Heckran, redirecting its attention away from Alfred. His eyes went wide as something swelled in him, making his fingertips tingle. Something flashed before his eyes- another memory?- as fire suddenly lit up his blade, licking at the Heckran to send it roaring back.

"_Now, I don't have magic, like several of you here. But for those who do have it, you can mix your ability with your swordplay. It's most likely you who will become part of the King's guard. Kiku, why don't you show them what I'm talking about?"_

_Kiku drew his thin sword, looking out at the other kids, just a few years younger than him. Among them sat Feliciano beside his brother, giving him a bright, encouraging smile. He weakly returned it and flicked the blade, lighting it on fire. His audience flinched back in awe. Feliciano was the first to jump up and clap, sending red flying up to his cheeks._

"_Awesome, Kiku!" Antonio chirped, clasping his hands. "One of my protégés, ladies and gentlemen!"_

Snapping back, Kiku blinked. "Antonio taught me swordplay. I was a _protégé_ of the Great Antonio."

Natalya jumped in front of him to slash at the Heckran, reminding him he could sort through these new memories some time later. Kiku faintly grinned as he spun around, spinning out fire as went. Natalya eventually backed away, leaving him to deal with the Heckran all on his own. She joined Matthew with Alfred, frowning at the impressive wound he sported. "Maybe we _should_ leave you at home," she murmured.

"You're actually concerned about me?" he grinned. Natalya smacked his head, barking at him to shut up. She nervously- though she'd never show it on her face- looked back to Kiku, suddenly fighting like he'd be taught to do so from a young age. From what he muttered earlier, it seemed to be so.

Maybe it was true, then. If she had been transported from that kingdom to the one she called home now, then it was possible she did have magic, and this was more serious than she previously thought. Arthur was one of "them", and the moving shadows in his tent back at the fair had been magic.

Natalya had to blink when Kiku moved in front of her, rushing over to Alfred. The Heckran was long gone, retreating from this strange magic-wielding human. "I apparently know some healing magic too," he explained as his hands started to glow. Alfred bolted upright, eyes wide. "Did it work?" Kiku asked.

"Of course it worked! Geez, I feel like I just drank five cups of coffee. TO TRUCE, EVERYONE!"

No one moved to follow his sprint into the tunnel. Matthew shook his head ruefully and muttered, "Only Alfred would be able to shrug a life-or-death situation off like that. But Kiku, since you remember some more things, can I ask if…."

As Kiku explained magic in better terms than the Old Man had, Natalya felt her frown deepening with each new step into the darkness.

((((()))))

"I see light!" Alfred cheered tugging at Matthew's arm. He fell back on the springy grass at the mouth of the tunnel, beckoning them to do the same. "Where do you think we are, Mattie? Close to town? I hope so. I gotta at least tell Tony and Lars we're okay."

Standing like any sensible person, Matthew scanned the area, trying to focus on determining their location rather than joining Alfred in celebrating their homecoming. It was hard to keep on task when the breeze brushed past him, bringing the salty smell of the ocean with it. If he closed his eyes, he could almost imagine himself back at home with Francis and Jeanne. Even though he and Alfred had agreed to keep their parents in the dark a little longer, he wanted to surround himself in his work and escape this new responsibility.

"…I think town's that way," Matthew pointed, squinting into the horizon where the edges were vaguely house-colored.

The sky hadn't changed since they entered the cave, but now a paler blue began to follow them as they walked, quickly melding into gold, and then bright red. By the time they heard the first evening clamor of the fair, the sky was almost completely black.

Kiku came to a halt at the gates to the square, lit up for the night by dozens of decorative lanterns. Several of the townspeople milling about held their own paper lanterns so they could stand around the massive fountain to talk. When it finally occurred to him that he'd just _stopped_, he turned to the others, only to find them in awe as well. Natalya especially seemed entranced by it all.

"How about we enjoy the last of the fair before heading to the Middle Ages?" Alfred proposed, already eyeing the soda-drinking contest about to begin. "We could stop by Artie's place and get some costumes…?"

"That's stupid," Natalya harrumphed, shaking off her earlier fascination. "There is no time to goof around here when we have a future to change. Now come on," she growled, shoving him forward. Alfred loudly sighed, but made no further arguments. Once reminded of how dire the situation was, he really had no choice but to move on, regardless of whether or not Natalya or Kiku would ever be able to fully enjoy their very first festival.

The Telepod sat where it was left, untouched and not tampered with by any Guardian soldiers or chancellors. Matthew was grateful for that much. As he set to work on starting the machine, Alfred turned back to the fair and smiled. Without him, Matthew, and Natalya, things were still going as smoothly as usual. Surely his mother and friends were distraught, but there was no telling if they had been part of Francis's plan from the start. Things would always be this peaceful in Truce, he knew. There was no way he'd let Morozko ruin it in the future, even after everyone he knew was long gone.

He turned back only when the gate appeared, beckoning them into a war they'd have to win.


	7. Chapter 7

**I now have a tumblr! On this tumblr, I'll be posting bits and pieces of new chapters as I work on them, so you all don't have to wait so long on my sorry, procrastinating self. The link is on my profile if anyone wants to check it out. Also, this chapter is insanely short compared to the others, but this will be a longish arc, so there may be two more chapters in this age.**

**Chapter 7-**

None of Alfred's history books could have prepared him for the Fiendlord War. A few months had passed in the era since the first time they had travelled to the Middle Ages, when they had come to rescue Natalya. In that short period of time, Magus and his troops had completely taken control of the southern half of the continent. There hadn't been any contact from Porre and Denadorino in weeks, and the army had moved towards the northern continent, the last Guardian stronghold.

The castle was understandably in chaos from the recent turn of events, and things had only worsened when the king arrived from the battlefield severely wounded. Queen Leene hadn't left his side in the week they'd already spent there.

There hadn't been any sight of Gilbert, either. Since the king had been rushed off the battlefield, Gilbert disappeared into the fray of mystics. Queen Leene swore he was wreaking havoc on their side- perfectly safe and uninjured!- but doubt and rumors were beginning to float around the castle.

Alfred was really getting tired of hearing them. Medieval armor was almost impossibly heavy, but the queen refused to let him out of the castle without some kind of protection. Matthew had almost started to froth at the mouth when Alfred announced his plans to join the troops at the front, and Natalya and Kiku had their own apprehensions. It didn't matter what they thought, anyway. He couldn't just sit around and wait for Magus to break through the defenses to meet him! Also, he had to find Gilbert and make sure he was okay. His vendetta against Magus would make him careless enough to get killed if he didn't watch himself.

He looked silly in chain mail and his coat, but he couldn't possibly leave his precious jacket back at the castle! It went wherever he did, regardless of tackiness or inconvenience. Besides, the shock of seeing him wearing it could make some mystics pause long enough for him to push them off Zenan Bridge.

"You are not going out there alone, Alfred," Matthew quipped, trailing after him in the armory. Kiku had also come with the excuse of looking at some of the weaponry while Natalya lingered in the doorway, arms crossed and mood sour. She wore her own chainmail and had new daggers to replace her old ones, but Matthew wasn't yelling at _her._ When Alfred pointed this out, Matthew's face turned an interesting red color.

"Yelling? You want YELLING?" he exploded, shocking Kiku into dropping the sword in his hands. The metal harshly clanged on the stone floor, making Natalya finally look up. She tightly sighed. "What part of _don't screw up history _do you not get? You're being an even bigger idiot than usual! I didn't know that was even POSSIBLE!"

Alfred winced at the pure verbal abuse. Matthew continued ranting anyway, voice growing an octave louder with every word. "Do you _think _before making these kinds of stupid decisions? If you go out to that battlefield, you'll die in an instant! You've heard the knights in the infirmary- they're fighting the skeletons of their fallen comrades! YOU CAN'T SHOOT A SKELETON AND HOPE TO KILL IT! THEY'RE ALREADY DEAD, ALFRED!"

"I'll get a sword, then!" he exclaimed, whirling around to Kiku, still staring with a cowed expression. "We can push through them like Gilbert! Kiku and I can break through the lines while you and Natalya back us up and help the troops! With his magic and stuff, we'll have them away from the bridge in no time!"

Kiku opened his mouth to respond to his suicidal plan, but Matthew cut him off. "He can't just throw his magic around without a care! Fire is dangerous, Alfred! Also, how are we going to explain a human having magic? They'll think we're mystics in disguise, working for Magus all along!"

"That's what they thought about Gilbert, but he-"

"GILBERT IS PROBABLY _DEAD!_"

Natalya pulled Matthew out of Alfred's face, stepping in before anyone could further meltdown. Without a word, she glared him over to her previous post. She didn't have to look at Kiku, already scurrying away with the excuse of finding everyone some lunch. Finally, Natalya jerked Alfred's chin to her level. "Both of you are right, but you're acting like stupid kids. Regardless of history, we can't wait in the castle forever. The legend says the hero defeated Magus at his stronghold, which is somewhere north of Porre. We need to cross Zenan to get there. However," she growled, flicking her eyes back up to Alfred, "blindly charging into battle will only get us killed. The knights need to win that battle. We can aid them, but I doubt we'll be doing much fighting. Guns will be basically useless, and I can't do much with my daggers."

She took a deep breath, trying to keep her cool when Alfred's eyes lit up again. "Say a word, and I swear I will rip out your vocal chords!"

He decided to listen to her.

"Now that Alfred has finally shut up, we can tell Leene our plans and get her advice on this. The king still needs to recover, and I don't think telling him this will help him feel at ease."

As she led the two back to the king's chambers- which had become a sort of mock audience chamber as of late- Matthew couldn't help but elbow Alfred in the ribs. In retaliation, Alfred flicked his forehead. "Boys," Natalya snapped.

"Sorry," they echoed.

((((()))))

"We're running out of rations," the captain huffed, wincing back at the fighting. His golden armor had several dents in it and his cape had been ripped off ages ago. Their strategy of interchanging platoons by the day had been going well enough, but none were permitted to leave in case reinforcements came for the mystics. So far, none had come, but their numbers weren't dwindling as the fallen were soon reanimated and forced to fight once more. The soldiers couldn't hold the line much longer without new supplies.

"I'll head to the kitchens," Natalya offered. "If you need anything else, you can ask them."

Alfred miserably nodded, keeping a jealous eye on the fighting going on just yards away. He would be able to help, he knew! But he had to concede that Natalya's plan was pretty smart, and it had stopped Matthew from strangling him. Mattie was still pretty peeved to be at the bridge though.

The captain released a heavy breath once she had gone. "Do mine eyes deceive me, or is she the spitting image of Her Majesty?"

"She gets that a lot," Alfred said. The captain gave him a hollow grin before shouting for the next platoon to take over. They ran into the fray with pathetic morale, immediately jumping into battle to allow their comrades to run back. The captain took off his helmet to salute them. Alfred, Matthew, and Kiku mimicked him. He joined the rest of the soldiers, frantically slashing at the enemy.

Matthew, assuming a role as medic, knelt next to the worst-off soldiers, pulling out the last of his supplies. He had spent most of his time at the palace in the infirmary, working with the rest of the short-staffed nurses. Kiku immediately strayed over to some of the better soldiers, checking up on their weapons and armor to assure all was well.

Alfred felt a tug at his sleeve, breaking his stare. At his side, in too-big armor, stood a kid that couldn't have been older than fifteen. He held his helmet at his side, revealing his dirty blonde hair. The boy nervously smiled. "Um, are you a new soldier, sir?"

"Kind of," Alfred answered. He tried to look past his baby face as he forced a grin of his own. "My name's Alfred."

"Alfred," he repeated. The boy had a bit of an accent, hardening his consonant sounds and deepening the vowel sounds. It was unlike anything Alfred had heard before. "My name is Raivis," he introduced with a salute. "This is my first time in battle. Everyone here has fought in Porre or somewhere else."

"Well, I think you're doing pretty good, Raivis! Is there anything you need? If you're injured or you need some new equipment-"

He quickly shook his head, unsheathing his sword. It had a different design than the others', and was much slimmer, too. That was probably how he had been able to lift it, let alone swing it at the enemy. "My oldest brother made this for me before I left home. Both of my brothers are fighting too, but they're at a higher position than me, so we don't have time to see each other. Actually, I was wondering if you could fill me in on some things? I was told to start fighting without getting much of an explanation. Was the king really injured a few weeks ago?"

Alfred nodded, looking back to the castle, looming in the distance. Natalya had probably made it there by now and was most likely threatening the cook and his staff for more food. For whatever reason, the head cook and the captain of the Zenan forces weren't exactly on the best of terms. It was a good thing Natalya was taking charge like this. Maybe she acted more like a princess than she liked to let on. Alfred sat down after Raivis did, finally admitting he was tired. "I heard as much. Did you hear about Gilbert Beilschmit? He was fighting alongside the king, but dove into enemy territory after His Majesty was taken back to the castle. I think he's looking to take on Magus himself."

Raivis's eyes grew wide. His hands began to shake a little, but he balled his fists before Alfred could take notice. "Captain Gilbert Beilschmit? Wow! My big brother met him once, about seven years ago. He told me he was an amazing knight. If he's looking for Magus, we'll have this war won soon!"

As he anxiously chattered on, Alfred only half-listened, looking for Natalya to hurry back. More soldiers were starting to wilt to their knees, and Matthew had too many patients to care for at once. Alfred needed to help, but Raivis kept him there, now asking about Matthew and Kiku. "Are they new soldiers as well?"

"Yeah. I think it's just us three and our friend at the castle. Almost everyone from Truce is already in the army. We're kind of new around here. Hey, do you remember when the queen was kidnapped? We helped Gilbert rescue her. Some mystics had hid her in Manolia Cathedral, pretending to be humans. You have to be careful around them- they looked and acted just like humans."

Raivis gulped at the thought, a shiver wracking through him. He looked back at the fighting for a moment before sighing. "I hope my brothers are okay. They were in Denadorino when the Fiendlord's army overtook it. They're all I've ever known. When this war started, they had to leave, and I was left alone. I joined the army against their wishes to try and get into the same platoon as them."

Alfred frowned, futilely trying to look past the fog and massive river for Denadorino. He could barely see the outlines of the mountains surrounding the town. "Don't worry, Raivis," he lowly said. "I'm sure they're okay."

"…I hope so," he murmured. With a sigh, he looked towards the castle. When he jumped up so suddenly, Alfred flinched, thinking he'd noticed a mystic that had broken through the line. However, it was only Natalya, loaded with bulging bags and a box of food. The mere sight of it made Alfred hungry.

"That's my other friend," Alfred beamed, leading Raivis over to meet her halfway. "This is Natalya! Also, yes, she does look a lot like Her Majesty."

Raivis didn't seem to be listening. He took the box of food, passed in along to someone else, and _hugged her._

"Princess!" he cried, squeezing her tight. Natalya tried to peel him off of her, starting to panic, but the boy wouldn't budge.

"Alfred," she snapped.

"I don't know!" he replied.

Raivis finally pulled back, further stunning them when they noticed he was crying. He shamelessly rubbed his eyes with his palms and beamed. "Princess, I can't believe you're here! We looked for you all over the place, but we couldn't find you! Toris is still looking for you, even during the fighting. I just can't believe you'd be here!"

"Raivis," Alfred nervously started, feeling the weight of the soldiers' stares on him, "I think you're confusing her for someone else. Natalya isn't-"

A sword at his neck cut him off. Matthew and Kiku bolted over in an instant, drawing their own weapons. Raivis started to shake again, making his sword wobble. However, he kept it pointed at Alfred. "No, Alfred, she's _my _princess. She's yours too, since you came from another time as well."

"You are also from the past?" Kiku cautiously asked.

Raivis ignored him, looking back to Natalya. "I came here with Toris, Eduard, Feliks, and the prince- surely you remember them, right? You had the same kind of pendant as your brother, so you shouldn't have lost your memory. If it weren't for the prince, we would have lost ours too."

A mighty crash from the battle interrupted her stunned, "My brother?"

Even Raivis gaped with wide eyes as a huge skeleton began to rise on the other end of the bridge, formed from the collective animated skeletons of the fallen soldiers. When it had fully risen, it began swatting at nearby soldiers, sending many flying off the bridge and into the long stretch of sea below.

"Now can we help fight?" Alfred weakly asked.

Matthew gave a terrified nod. The soldiers situated around them stood to attention (stuffing their mouths as they went) and looked to him for instruction. When Matthew found his voice wasn't properly working, Alfred took over for him. "We're going to charge in and protect the front. Get as close to its legs as possible so it can't throw you off the bridge. My friends and I will focus on bringing it down, so back us up too."

Once they gave a collective salute, the line charged, shouting a battle cry as they went. Raivis ran near Natalya's side, promising he wouldn't let her get touched. Alfred had to pull her away before she could give the boy an earful of modern-day profanity.

Up close and personal to the skeleton didn't diminish their fear of it. Raivis was shaking something terrible- if he wasn't so motivated to protect Natalya, Alfred knew he probably would have passed out by now. Most of the soldiers looked the same, motivated solely by Alfred's encouraging shouts and horrifying thoughts of what would happen to Guardia if the monster made it across the bridge.

"A-A-Alfred," Raivis stuttered, his armor clinking from his trembling, "I-I think I have an idea."

"Is it better than my idea of whacking at it until it falls down?" he asked, clumsily stabbing his sword into the skeleton's leg. It took almost too long to dislodge it. The skeleton's massive hand swept down low, dragging soldiers away. Alfred winced, forcing himself not to look. "Okay, it _is _better than my idea. Anything's better than my idea. What are you thinking?"

In response, he lifted his hand. In almost an instant, a swirling dark mass had formed. "We have to use magic. Physical attacks aren't doing anything. The princess and I can take the torso; you and those other two can handle the legs."

"Uh, would this be a bad time to tell you we don't have magic? Well, except for Kiku, but-"

Raivis stopped vibrating long enough to shriek and practically start convulsing. "WHAT?" he squeaked. "B-but, you're from Zeal! Everyone at the palace had magic!"

"Zeal? What? Dude, I'm from Truce! It's just Kiku and maybe Natalya!"

"No way! You look just like…." Raivis cut himself off, nervously biting his lip. "I'm not supposed to talk about that. Just… just hang back, then. I'll be able to handle this thing on my own. This was my brother's creation anyway."

With no further explanation, Raivis jabbed his hand with the shadow magic at the skeleton. The bone seemed to bend and crack away from the magic. At the weakened spot, Raivis stabbed his sword into the leg. It further cracked. Alfred yelled for him to get the other leg- he could handle it from here. Kiku caught on and slashed out at the torso, swinging fire high. Natalya threw out her endless supply of daggers (_Seriously_, Alfred thought, _where does she even keep all of them?_) and Matthew began looking for the mystic that had cast a spell that could make a monster like this.

While the rest of the troops and his pals pounded away at the skeleton, Matthew scanned every face and every retreating mystic for something out of the ordinary. Aside from Raivis- who had been too busy with Alfred to cast the spell- no one appeared to be exceptionally powerful. A few of the Guardian troops left the fight with the skeleton and went after the mystics. Matthew supposed the battle had been won, just like history stated.

Still, there had to be something, or someone….

That something and someone suddenly caught Matthew's eye. A sword nearly identical to Raivis's stood impaled into the ground beside a soldier, nervously watching the battle. Or was he watching Raivis? Matthew couldn't be sure. The young man had pale hair like Raivis's and glasses. From what he could tell from the distance, the man also looked similar enough to Raivis. Was this one of his brothers?

Almost as soon as he thought it, the young man hurriedly put back on his helmet and picked up his sword. He was gone in an instant, fading into the crowd of other soldiers. Matthew turned back to the skeleton, just barely able to fight back. Individual bones lay scattered on the bridge, and those still molded together as the monster's body were starting to fall apart or break. Nearly all of the soldiers had left the fight, save the captain and few others, listening solely to Alfred's command. It struck him as ironic. Alfred had always wanted to be a knight and a hero, and now he was both.

Kiku and Alfred seemed to have come up with some new moves. When Kiku would shoot out some more of his fire, Alfred would stab through it to fell the monster quicker. They kept this up for quite a while, doing a good enough job for Natalya to join Matthew. She was only slightly out of breath, but Matthew had a sinking suspicion that she was only acting as though she wasn't tired. Even Alfred and Kiku looked ready to sleep for a day or two.

"I saw someone else with the same sword as Raivis," Matthew reported, convincing her to sit down a moment. She begrudgingly obeyed with a tight sigh. "I think he may be one of the others Raivis spoke of. The ones with, er, your… brother. If he's not mistaking you for someone else, of course. There's always a possibility-"

"Shut up, Matthew," Natalya tiredly said. "You know it's true. I knew it was true, but I kept trying to convince myself otherwise. From the way things are looking, you and Alfred or your parents were from the past too. Gilbert as well, most likely. Maybe everyone in the bloody world is!"

Matthew winced, trying to sort through his thoughts for some way to comfort her. Nothing he came up with would help- _It's not too bad; you don't have to go back there. _If they were going to stop Morozko, it probably meant stopping the princess as well, thus preventing everyone from going back in time. Natalya would never pop up in Matthew and Alfred's present. They would never meet, never journey together, never knew the other existed. To save the future was to erase everything they had ever done together.

The thought made him stop a moment. Francis wouldn't have come to the future, either. He didn't know if Jeanne had come with him or had lived in Truce all of her life, but Matthew was certain Francis would disappear. What would happen to him? If Francis and Jeanne didn't find him and adopt him….

No.

He couldn't think about that. He had more important things to sort through, such as a war, saving the future, and helping the distressing princess. Matthew could wait to focus on his personal problems later.

"WE DID IT!"

Matthew and Natalya looked up to see Alfred group-hugging everyone within range, including a still-shaking Raivis and horribly flustered Kiku. The skeleton was nowhere to be found, and there was a new, large hole in the side of the bridge. Alfred gave the captain a quick salute and ran off before he could receive any form of gratitude. With an apology to the captain, Kiku trailed after them. Raivis remained on the bridge, frowning over the side, still shivering. "Mattie, Natalya," Alfred shouted, "we did it! We beat Zombor! We saved the mainland! We're going to defeat Magus and win the war!"

"Z-Zombor?"

"It's the nickname I gave to Mr. Bones back there. Sounds pretty intimidating, eh?"

"Not really."

"You're such a party-pooper, Mattie."

Alfred dragged them to their feet, still bouncing in triumph. Once on their feet, he pulled them and Kiku into a second group hug. Natalya clawed her way out of it in an instant with an elbow to the stomach. "Alfred!" she shrieked.

He laughed it off, taking the abuse in stride. After the awesome victory they just had, Alfred was willing to put up with any sour mood she or Matthew handed him. He was sure nothing could bring him down now.

Except for one thing.

_I'll be able to handle this thing on my own. This was my brother's creation anyway._

His brother's… creation? That made no sense! Why would Raivis's brother, who was obviously part of the Guardian army, want to make Zombor? That was sabotage to the extreme. In the middle of a war like this, sabotage could ruin everything. Sabotage… like kidnapping the queen and crushing the kingdom's morale.

Alfred felt the smile slip from his face. He tossed a look over his shoulder, but Raivis wasn't standing at the bridge anymore. In a panic, he searched all of the soldiers for any sign of him, but Raivis was long gone.

There had been four others with him, including Natalya's so-called brother. If Raivis was a spy for the other side, maybe one of his brothers could be…. But it didn't make any sense! Slash was rumored to be a human, but it was probably just a rumor. Why would people fight with mystics in a war for their domination? If Magus was really Morozko, why would he be fighting for the mystics? Not that he was, if Raivis had been telling the truth. He, his brothers, and whoever Feliks and Natalya's brother were, were from an earlier age.

They were wrong, the Old Man had been wrong- but what could they do? It was already obvious they played a part in ending the war. If they left now, there was no telling what could happen. Maybe Magus would win and mystics would rule over everything. Alfred also owed Gilbert, the king, the queen, and the captain, too. He had to win the war for their sakes.

So, after proposing they head to Denadorino before night fell, Alfred decided to keep quiet. Matthew would probably figure things out soon enough, and hopefully they'd be too involved to quit by then.

A lump sat in his throat as he tiredly trudged alongside his friends.


End file.
